Prebiotic Processes: Systems and Theories

Dear Colleagues,

Prebiotic processes underlying the origin of life in terrestrial and/or extraterrestrial environments remain one of the most fascinating and challenging enigmas to scientists. Solving this puzzle is in the hands of illuminated, open-minded and intuitive chemists working in concert with physicists, astronomists and biologists.

“The question of life’s primordial beginnings—one of those existential questions that humans have pondered since antiquity—belongs squarely in the domain of chemistry.” (Jogalekar, A. Why chemists should study the origin of life).

"Biogenesis, as a problem of science, is lastly going to be a problem of synthesis. The origin of life cannot be 'discovered', it has to be re-invented." (Eschenmoser, A. The search for the chemistry of life’s origin. Tetrahedron 2007, 63, 12821–12844.)

Prebiotic chemistry is part of the cosmic evolution, which is based on the progressive transition from simplicity to complexity. From the simplest atoms formed after the Big Bang to the complex organic molecules (COMs), which represent building blocks of life, prebiotic chemistry encompasses innumerable tales of exotic processes, unexpected findings and serendipitous discoveries. Paradigmatic of the simple-to-complex astrochemical transition are the generation of amino acids from inorganic species in the notorious Miller–Urey experiment and the origin of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) which are putatively responsible for a family of infrared emission features in a wide variety of astrophysical environments. Pillars of prebiotic chemistry are the spark discharge aminonitrile synthesis, nucleobase synthesis by HCN oligomerization, and sugar synthesis by the formose reaction. Elucidation of these three processes has paved the way to modern astrobiology and prebiotic chemistry. However, despite rapid advancements, the field of prebiotic chemistry is still at its outset, and a number of big questions have still to be solved:

1. How might chirality have been maintained in aqueous, racemizing environments?
2. Is chirality a requirement for life or a result of it?
3. What might have been the requirements for the first biopolymers?
4. Did life originate in terrestrial or extraterrestrial environments?
5. What are the most reliable experimental and theoretical models to reproduce the environments and conditions sustaining prebiotic processes?

Today, a new era of exciting discoveries is about to come and it is likely that very soon most of the above issues are definitively settled.

This Special Issue was conceived in the frame of the mission of the Italian Interuniversity Center STAR (Systems and Theories for Astrochemical Research) founded jointly by Scuola Normale Superiore (Pisa), University of Bologna and University of Naples Federico II (http://star.sns.it/). It aims to collect original top-quality papers at the frontiers of astrochemistry that have a strong bearing on the elusive chemistry underlying the origin of life. It is expected that this new collection of contributions, comprising both critical reviews and original research reports, will eventually foster new links of cooperation and will promote further important advancements into this emerging and fascinating field of research.

Prof. Cristina Puzzarini
Prof. Vincenzo Barone
Prof. Dr. Marco d'Ischia
Guest Editors

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• astrochemistry
• prebiotic molecules
• chemical reactivity
• chemical evolution
• origin of life