Researchers from two Swiss higher education institutions have developed a system to observe chemical reactions on a very small scale, confirming that urea played an essential role in the origin of life on Earth.
Released this Wednesday, the conclusions are the result of a study conducted by researchers from the University of Geneva and the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, which confirm previously stated hypotheses about the role of urea, a chemical compound containing carbon and hydrogen. . and is present in substances such as urine, sweat and feces.
According to experts, cosmic rays would have acted on the urea that was present in pools of warm water before the emergence of life on Earth.
In this “primordial soup”, the urea, when exposed to radiation, would have produced malonic acid, one of the main sources of DNA and RNA.
To prove these hypotheses, the researchers developed a spectroscopic observation method that made it possible to observe a series of chemical reactions with very high image definition.
Based on infrared radiation technology, specialists were able to analyze changes at the molecular level in just a few millionths of a second.
On the other hand, to analyze these reactions in liquids, the team designed a device that can eject a very fine stream of water to observe the urea response under different pressure conditions.
The project coordinators believe that the key to studying the wide range of chemical reactions that influenced the development of the first forms of life lies in the action of ionizing rays.
“We found that an ionizing reaction causes a hydrogen atom in each pair of urea molecules to move from one particle to another”explained Hans Jakob Wörner, a professor at the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, in a statement.
The researchers point out that just at the time of this very small reaction, a series of chemical reactions may have taken place that culminated in the formation of malonic acid.
Until now, it has not been possible to confirm the role of urea in the formation of life on Earth, because this reaction takes place so quickly that it exceeds all established theories, they add.
The new instrument to observe chemical reactions in liquids on such a small scale could contribute to the development of new medicines or to the solar energy industry
Source: DN
