Prebiotic Synthesis of Hydrophobic and Protein Amino Acids

Abstract The formation of amino acids by the action of electric discharges on a mixture of methane, nitrogen, and water with traces of ammonia was studied in detail. The presence of glycine, alanine, α-amino-n-butyric acid, α-aminoisobutyric acid, valine, norvaline, isovaline, leucine, isoleucine, alloisoleucine, norleucine, proline, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, serine, threonine, allothreonine, α-hydroxy-γ-aminobutyric acid, and α,γ-diaminobutyric acid was confirmed by ion-exchange chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. All of the primary α-amino acids found in the Murchison Meteorite have been synthesized by this electric discharge experiment.