नवीनतम
New technology sheds further light on how life formed on Earth
NEW DELHI [Maha Media]: Utilizing an innovative approach, researchers have shed further light on an age-old question- how did life originate on Earth? The study, led by an international collaborative group, offers a glimpse into the very first processes responsible for the formation of life's building blocks.
It is believed that small water puddles containing urea, a vital organic compound for nucleo base formation, were subjected to the intense high-energy radiation from space, which was omnipresent before life was formed, causing the urea to undergo conversion into reaction products that eventually formed DNA and RNA.
To delve deeper into the mechanisms behind urea ionization and reaction, as well as the pathways and energy dissipation involved, the international team, including corresponding author Zhong Yin, an associate professor at Tohoku University's International Center for Synchrotron Radiation Innovation Smart (SRIS), developed an innovative X-ray spectroscopy approach.
Leveraging a high-harmonic generation light source and a sub-micron liquid flat-jet, the new approach enabled scientists to investigate chemical reactions in liquids with unparalleled temporal precision. This cutting-edge technique allowed the team to observe the intricate changes in urea molecules at the femtosecond level, which is equivalent to a quadrillionth of a second.
"We have shown for the first time how urea molecules react after ionization. Ionisation radiation damages the urea biomolecules. But in dissipating the energy from the radiation, the ureas undergo a dynamical process which occurs at the femtosecond time scale," said corresponding author Zhong Yin, currently based as an associate professor at Tohoku University's International Center for Synchrotron Radiation Innovation Smart (SRIS).
While past studies had primarily focused on the gas phase, this new approach facilitated investigations in the aqueous environment, which closely resembles the natural setting of biochemical processes. For this, the researchers developed a device that could generate an ultra-thin liquid jet, with a thickness smaller than one-millionth of a meter, within a vacuum was a crucial aspect of the experiment. A thicker jet would have hindered measurements by absorbing a significant portion of the X-rays used in the study.
Yin believes that their breakthrough not only provides insights into the formation of life on Earth but also opens up new avenues in the burgeoning field of attochemistry.
"Shorter light pulses are necessary to understand chemical reactions in real time and push the boundaries in attochemistry. Our approach enables scientists to observe a molecular movie, following each step of the process along the way," Yin said.
The novel X-ray spectroscopy approach has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of fundamental biological processes and their origins.
The team's finding's are published in the journal Nature.
