Iâve also been offering the reading list below to anyone interested. Since I put this together thereâs been about a dozen new papers Iâve noticed that deserve inclusion, but for now this should keep people busy.
I. Synthesis
- Amino Acids & Peptides
âPrebiotic Synthesis of Cysteine Peptides in Neutral Waterâ - Foden (2020) https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.abd5680
âSulfur Amino Acids: From Prebiotic Chemistry to Biologyâ - Youssef-Saliba (2021) Thieme E-Journals - Synthesis / Abstract
âCysteine Chemistry in Connection to Abiogenesisâ - Shalayel (2020) https://chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ejoc.202000089
âA Thermodynamic Chemical Reaction Network Drove Autocatalytic Prebiotic Peptide Formationâ - Bao (2022) A thermodynamic chemical reaction network drove autocatalytic prebiotic peptides formation - ScienceDirect
âPrimordial Emergence of a Nucleic Acid Binding Protein via Phase Separation and Statistical Ornithine-to-Arginine Conversionâ - Longo (2020) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2001989117
âReactivity Landscape of Pyruvate under Simulated Hydrothermal Vent Conditionsâ - Novikov (2013) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1304923110
âWater Microdroplets Allow Spontaneous Abiotic Production of Peptidesâ - Wang (2021) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c01083
âPeptide Synthesis in Aqueous Microdropletsâ - Deal (2022) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2216015119
âAqueous Microdroplets Enable Abiotic Synthesis and Chain Extension of Unique Peptide Isomers from Free Amino Acidsâ - Cooks (2022) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2212642119
- Fatty Acids
âLipid Synthesis Under Hydrothermal Conditions by Fischer-Tropsch Type Reactionsâ - McCollom (1999) Lipid Synthesis Under Hydrothermal Conditions by Fischer- Tropsch-Type Reactions | SpringerLink
âLipid Formation by Aqueous Fischer-Tropsch Type Synthesis from 100-400Câ - Rushdi (2001) Lipid Formation by Aqueous Fischer-Tropsch-Type Synthesis over a Temperature Range of 100 to 400 °C | SpringerLink
âPlausible Sources of Membrane-Forming Fatty Acids on the Early Earth: A Review of the Literature and an Estimation of Amountsâ - Cohen (2023) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acsearthspacechem.2c00168
âThe Abiotic Formation of Hydrocarbons from Dissolved CO2 Under Hydrothermal Conditions with Cobalt-Bearing Magnetiteâ - Ji (2008) The Abiotic Formation of Hydrocarbons from Dissolved CO2 Under Hydrothermal Conditions with Cobalt-Bearing Magnetite | SpringerLink
- Sugars
âPrebiotic Carbohydrate Synthesis: Zinc-Proline Catalyses Direct Aqueous Aldol Reactions of Alpha-Hydroxy Aldehydes and Ketonesâ - Kofoed (2005) Prebiotic carbohydrate synthesis: zincâproline catalyzes direct aqueous aldol reactions of α-hydroxy aldehydes and ketones - Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry (RSC Publishing)
âA Plausible Prebiotic Path to Nucleosides: : Ribosides and Related Aldosides Generated from Ribulose, Fructose, and Similar Abiotic Precursorsâ - Roche (2022) https://chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/chem.202203036
âA Plausible Prebiotic Selection for Ribose for RNA Formation - Formation, Dynamic Isolation, and Nucleotide Synthesis Based on Metal Doped Claysâ - Zhao (2021) A plausible prebiotic selection of ribose for RNA - formation, dynamic isolation, and nucleotide synthesis based on metal-doped-clays - ScienceDirect
âPlausibility of the Formose Reaction in Alkaline Hydrothermal Vent Environmentsâ - Omran (2020) Plausibility of the Formose Reaction in Alkaline Hydrothermal Vent Environments - Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres
- Phosphorylated Sugars
âAbiotic Production of Sugar Phosphates and Uridine Ribonucleoside in Aqueous Microdropletsâ - Nam (2017) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1714896114
âCysteine and Iron Accelerate the Formation of RIbose-5-Phosphateâ - Piedrafita (2021) Cysteine and iron accelerate the formation of ribose-5-phosphate, providing insights into the evolutionary origins of the metabolic network structure
- Nucleobases
âPyrrhotite Catalyzes the Formation of Uracil Under Hydrothermal Conditionsâ - Aldecoa (2013) https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC2013/EPSC2013-679.pdf
âA Nonenzymatic Analogue of Pyrimidine Nucleobase Biosynthesisâ - Yi (2022) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ange.202117211
âBuilding the Uracil Skeleton in Primitive Ponds at the Origins of Life: Carbamoylation of Aspartic Acidâ - Ter-Ovanessian (2022) Building the uracil skeleton in primitive ponds at the origins of life: carbamoylation of aspartic acid | Scientific Reports
âA Plausible Prebiotic Synthesis of Orotate and Pyruvate Suggestive of Common Proto-Metabolic Pathwaysâ - Clay (2022) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/anie.202112572
âA One Pot Water Compatible Synthesis of Pyrimidine Nucleobases Under Plausible Prebiotic Conditionsâ - Okamura (2019) A one-pot, water compatible synthesis of pyrimidine nucleobases under plausible prebiotic conditions - Chemical Communications (RSC Publishing)
âSilica Metal Oxide Vesicles Catalyze Comprehensive Prebiotic Chemistryâ - Bizarri (2018) https://chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/chem.201706162
- Nucleosides
âAbiotic Synthesis of Purine and Pyrimidine Ribonucleosides in Aqueous Microdropletsâ - Nam (2018) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1718559115
âDirect Prebiotic Pathway to DNA Nucleosidesâ - Teichert (2019) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ange.201903400
âA Prebiotic Ribosylation of Pyrimidine Nucleobases Enabled by Metal Cations and Clay Mineralsâ - Chen (2021) Life | Free Full-Text | A Prebiotic Ribosylation of Pyrimidine Nucleobases Enabled by Metal Cations and Clay Minerals
- Nucleotides
âAqueous Microdroplet Driven Abiotic Synthesis of Ribonucleotidesâ - Ju (2022) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c03486
âPhysical Non-Equilibria for Prebiotic Nucleic Acid Chemistryâ - Ianeselli (2023) Physical non-equilibria for prebiotic nucleic acid chemistry | Nature Reviews Physics
âConfinement and Time Immemorial: Prebiotic Synthesis of Nucleotides on a Porous Mineral Nanoreactorâ - (Rodriguez 2019) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jpclett.9b01448
- RNA
âOn the Prebiotic Selection of Nucleotide Anomers: A Computational Studyâ - Castanedo (2022) On the prebiotic selection of nucleotide anomers: A computational study - ScienceDirect
âPrebiotic Pathway from Ribose to RNAâ - Banfalvi (2021) IJMS | Free Full-Text | Prebiotic Pathway from Ribose to RNA Formation
âEmergence of RNA from the Heterogeneous Products of Prebiotic Nucleotide Synthesisâ - Kim (2021) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/jacs.0c12955
âRibose Selected as Precursor for Lifeâ - Banfalvi (2020) https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/dna.2019.4943
II. Mutualism
âPrebiotic Peptides: Molecular Hubs in the Origin of Lifeâ - Frenkel-Pinter (2020) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00664
âThe Systems Chemistry of Nucleic Acid-Peptide Networksâ - Bandela (2022) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ijch.202200030
âCo-Evolution of Primordial Membranes and Membrane Proteinsâ - Mulkidjanian (2009) Co-evolution of primordial membranes and membrane proteins - ScienceDirect
âSynergism and Mutualism in Nonenzymatic RNA Polymerizationâ - Kaddour (2014) Life | Free Full-Text | Synergism and Mutualism in Non-Enzymatic RNA Polymerization
âThe Central Symbiosis of Molecular Biology: Molecules in Mutualismâ - Lanier (2017) The Central Symbiosis of Molecular Biology: Molecules in Mutualism | SpringerLink
âMutually Stabilizing Interactions Between Protopeptides and RNAâ - Frenkel-Pinter (2020) Mutually stabilizing interactions between proto-peptides and RNA | Nature Communications
âLipid-Assisted Polymerization of Nucleotidesâ - Olasagasti (2019) Life | Free Full-Text | Lipid-Assisted Polymerization of Nucleotides
âRibonucleotides and RNA Promote Peptide Chain Growthâ - Griesser (2016) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/anie.201610650
âYin and Yang: Polypeptide and Polynucleotideâ - Williams (2012) https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/williams_2013.pdf
III. Concentration, Polymerization, and Molecular Transport Mechanisms
âLocomotion and Transformation of Underwater Micrometer-Sized Molecular Aggregatesâ - Toyota (2017) https://journals.jps.jp/doi/abs/10.7566/JPSJ.86.101006
âThermal Habitat for RNA Amplification and Accumulationâ - Salditt (2020) https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.125.048104
âEscalation of Polymerization in a Thermal Gradientâ - Mast (2013) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1303222110
âMineral Surfaces Select for Longer RNA Moleculesâ - Mizuuchi (2019) Mineral surfaces select for longer RNA molecules - Chemical Communications (RSC Publishing) DOI:10.1039/C8CC10319D
âAn RNA-Making Reactor for the Origin of Lifeâ - Koonin (2007) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.0702699104
âFormation of Protocell-Like Vesicles in a Thermal Diffusion Columnâ - Budin (2009) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/ja9029818
IV. Messy Chemistry & Experiments Beyond a âPristine Labâ
âAdsorption of RNA on Mineral Surfaces and Mineral Precipitatesâ - Biondi (2017) https://www.beilstein-journals.org/bjoc/articles/13/42
âWhere Did Life Begin? Testing Ideas in Prebiotic Analogue Environmentsâ - Deamer (2021) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/11/2/134
âCan Prebiotic Systems Survive in the Wild? An Intereference Chemistry Approachâ - Walton (2022) https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2022.1011717/full?&utm_source=Email_to_authors_&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=T1_11.5e1_author&utm_campaign=Email_publication&field=&journalName=Frontiers_in_Earth_Science&id=1011717
âSpontaneous Formation of Functional Structures in Messy Environmentsâ - Mayer (2022) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/12/5/720
âOrigins of Life Research: The Conundrum Between Laboratory and Field Simulations of Messy Environmentsâ - Deamer (2022) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/12/9/1429
V. The Ribosome & Translation
âOrigin of Life: Protoribosome Forms Peptide Bonds and Links RNA and Protein Dominated Worldsâ - Bose (2022) https://academic.oup.com/nar/article/50/4/1815/6523807
âRoot of the Tree: The Significance, Evolution, and Origin of the Ribosomeâ - Bowman (2020) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00742
âThe Ribosome Challenge to the RNA Worldâ - Bowman (2015) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00239-015-9669-9
âThe Difficult Case of an RNA-only Origin of Lifeâ - Le Vay (2019) https://portlandpress.com/emergtoplifesci/article/3/5/469/220563/The-difficult-case-of-an-RNA-only-origin-of-life
âThe Origin of the Prebiotic Information System in an RNA/Peptide Worldâ - Chatterjee (2019) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/9/1/25
âPossible Emergence of Sequence-Specific RNA Aminoacylation Via Peptide Intermediary to Initiate Darwinian Evolution and Code Through Origin of Lifeâ - Kunnev (2018) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/4/44
âA Prebiotically Plausible Scenario of an RNA-Peptide Worldâ - Muller (2022) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04676-3
âThe Evolution of Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases: From Dawn to LUCAâ - de Pouplana (2020) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1874604720300299
âtRNA Evolution from the Proto-tRNA Mini-Helix Worldâ - Root Bernstein (2016) https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/21541264.2016.1235527
âEmergence of Information Transmission in a Prebiotic RNA Reactorâ - Obermayer (2011) https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.018101
âExceptional Error Minimization in Putative Primordial Genetic Codesâ - Novozhilov (2009) https://biologydirect.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1745-6150-4-44
âOn the Origin of Sequenceâ - van der Gulik (2015) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/5/4/1629
âThe Origin of Heredity in Protocellsâ - West (2017) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2016.0419
VI. The Hadean
âPaleomineralogy of the Hadean Eon: A Preliminary Species Listâ - Hazen (2013) https://www.ajsonline.org/content/313/9/807.short
âThe Paleomineralogy of the Hadean Eon Revisitedâ - Morrison (2018) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/4/64
âA Wet Heterogeneous Mantle Creates a Habitable World in the Hadeanâ - Korenaga (2022) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-04371-9
âLife in a Carbon Dioxide Worldâ - Preiner (2021) https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00977-1
âEvidence for Early Life in Earthâs Oldest Hydrothermal Vent Precipitatesâ - Dodd 2017 https://www.nature.com/articles/nature21377 (Compilerâs Note: A subsequent publication has questioned whether or not the fossils are as old as the vent system. But both studies concur that the site is 3.7-4.2 Ga.)
âThe Hadean Crust: Evidence from >4 Ga Zirconsâ - Harrison (2009) https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.earth.031208.100151
âNitrogen Oxides in Early Earthâs Atmosphere as Electron Acceptors for Lifeâs Emergenceâ - Wong (2017) https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ast.2016.1473
âComposition of the Primordial Ocean Just After Its Formationâ - Ueda (2021) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-163X/11/4/389
âPrimordial Ocean Chemistry and Its Compatability with an RNA Worldâ - Kua (2011) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11084-011-9250-5
VII. Emergence of Metabolism
âSimultaneous Synthesis of Thioesters and Iron Sulfur Clusters in Water: Two Universal Components of Energy Metabolismâ - Sanden (2020) https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2020/cc/d0cc04078a/unauth
âSpontaneous Assembly of Redox-Active Iron Sulfur Clusters at Low Concentrations of Cysteineâ - Jordan (2021) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-26158-2
âCarbon-Metal Bonds: Rare and Primordial in Metabolismâ - Martin (2019) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0968000419300908
âRecreating Ancient Metabolic Pathways Before Enzymesâ - Muchowska (2019) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0968089619300033
âSynthesis and Breakdown of Universal Metabolic Precursors Promoted by Ironâ - Muchowska (2019) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1151-1
âLinked Cycles of Oxidative Decarboxylation of Glyoxylate as Protometabolic Analogs of the Citric Acid Cycleâ - Springsteen (2018) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-02591-0
âThe Messy Alkaline Formose Reaction and Its Link to Metabolismâ - Omran (2020) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/10/8/125
Debate: Cyanide and Metabolism
âPrebiotic Synthesis of Alpha-Amino Acids and Orotate from Alpha-Keto Acids Potentiates Transition to Extant Metabolic Pathwaysâ - Pulletikurti (2022) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41557-022-00999-w
vs.
âAn Appeal to Magic?â The Discovery of a Nonenzymatic Metabolism and its Role in the Origins of Life" - Ralser (2018) https://portlandpress.com/biochemj/article/475/16/2577/49772/An-appeal-to-magic-The-discovery-of-a-non
âBeating the Acetyl CoA Pathway to the Origin of Lifeâ - Nitschke (2013) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2012.0258
âCatalysts, Autocatalysis, and the Origins of Metabolismâ - Preiner (2019) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsfs.2019.0072
VIII. Paleometabolism & LUCA
âChemical Basis of Carbon Fixation Autotrophic Paleometabolismâ - Marakushev (2021) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1134/S1062359021050095
âThe Autotrophic Core: An Ancient Network of 404 Reactions Converts H2, CO2, and NH3 into Amino Acids, Bases, and Cofactorsâ - Wimmer (2021) https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/9/2/458
âOn the Chemistry and Evolution of the Pioneer Organismâ - Wachtershauser (2007) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/cbdv.200790052
âProtometabolism as Out of Equilibrium Chemistryâ - Nader (2022) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsta.2020.0423
âProtometabolism as Out of Equilibrium Chemistryâ - Nader (2022) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsta.2020.0423
âThe Compositional and Evolutionary Logic of Metabolismâ - Braakman (2012) https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1478-3975/10/1/011001/meta
âNonenzymatic Metabolic Reactions and Lifeâs Originsâ - Muchowska (2020) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.chemrev.0c00191
âA Consensus View of the Proteome of the Last Universal Common Ancestorâ - Crapitto (2022) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.8930
âHigh CO2 Levels Drive the TCA Cycle Backwards to Autotrophyâ - Steffens (2021) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03456-9
IX. The âWater Paradoxâ
âChemistry in Nanoconfined Waterâ - Manoz-Santiburtio (2017) https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2017/sc/c6sc04989c
âThe Ambivalent Role of Water at the Origins of Lifeâ - Nascimento Vieira (2020) https://febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/1873-3468.13815
âChemical Reactivity Under Nanoconfinementâ - Grommet (2020) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41565-020-0652-2
âThe Rocky Road to Organics Needs Dryingâ - Andreani (2023) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-36038-6
âThe Power of Crowding for the Origin of Lifeâ - Hansma (2015) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11084-014-9382-5
âGeneration of Long RNA Chains in Waterâ - Costanzo (2009) https://www.jbc.org/article/S0021-9258(20)37757-7/fulltext
âSpontaneous Formation and Base Pairing of Plausible Prebiotic Nucleotides in Waterâ - Cafferty (2016) https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms11328
X. Clay Minerals
âLayered Double Hydroxides as Nanoreactors for Prebiotic Chemistryâ - Gregoire (2013) https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC2013/EPSC2013-521.pdf
âNatural Double Layered Hydroxides: Structure, Chemistry, and Information Storage Capacityâ - Krivovichev (2011) https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-20018-2_9
âLayered Double Hydroxides: Precursors for Multifunctional Catalystsâ - Tichit (2006) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11244-006-0041-6
âLayered Double Hydroxides as Possible Information Storage and Transfer Compoundsâ - Greenwell (2006) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11084-005-2068-2
âVesicle Formation Induced by Layered Double Hydroxidesâ - Nie (2011) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00396-011-2391-2
âIn Situ Polymerization and Intercalation of Polymers in Layered Double Hydroxidesâ - Taviot-Gueho (2005) https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/430_001
âLayered Double Hydroxides in Bioinspired Nanotechnologyâ - Arrabito (2020) https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/10/7/602
âFormation of Hydrotalcite in Aqueous Solutions and Intercalation of ATP by Anion Exchangeâ - Tamura (2006) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0021979706002864
âAdsorption of Nucleotides onto Ferromagnesian Phyllosilicates: Significance for the Origin of Lifeâ - Pedreire-Segade (2016) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S001670371500719X
âAdsorption of Nucleic Acid Bases, Ribose, and Phosphate by Some Clay Mineralsâ - Hashizume (2015) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/5/1/637
âClays and the Origins of Life: The Experimentsâ - Kloprogge (2022) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/12/2/259
âStability of Free and Mineral Protected Nucleic Acids: Implications for the RNA Worldâ - Swadling (2012) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016703711007447
âFougerite: The Not So Simple Progenitor of the First Cellsâ - Duval (2019) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsfs.2019.0063
âGreen Rust: The âSimpleâ Organizing Seed of All Life?â - Russell (2018) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/3/35
âOn the whyâs and howâs of clay minerals importance in lifeâs emergenceâ - Duval (2020) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169131720303021
XI. Protecting Groups?
âHow Do Nucleotides Adsorb onto Clays?â - Pedreire-Segade (2018) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/4/59
âMineral Surface Chemistry Control for Origin of Prebiotic Peptidesâ - Erastova (2017) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-02248-y
XII. Homochirality
âPossible Chemical and Physical Scenarious Toward Biological Homochiralityâ - Sallembien (2022) https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2022/cs/d1cs01179k
âSpontaneous Mirror Symmetry Breaking in the Limited Enantioselective Autocatalysis Model: Abyssal Hydrothermal Vents as Scenario for the Emergence of Chirality in Prebiotic Chemistryâ - Ribo (2013) https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ast.2012.0904
âChemical Basis of Biological Homochirality During the Abiotic Evolution Stages in Earthâ - Ribo (2019) https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/11/6/814
âDuplex Formation and the Origins of Homochiralityâ - Deamer (2022) https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ast.2021.0018
âSpontaneous Mirror Symmetry Breaking in Heterocatalytically Coupled Enantioselective Replicatorsâ - Ribo (2017) https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2017/sc/c6sc02446g
âOn the Origin of Sugar Handedness: Facts, Hypotheses, and Missing Links - A Reviewâ - Martinez (2022) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11084-022-09624-9
XIII. Serpentinization
âSerpentinite and the Dawn of Lifeâ - Sleep (2011) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rstb.2011.0129
âSerpentinization, Carbon, and Deep Lifeâ - Shrenk (2013) https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/msa/rimg/article-abstract/75/1/575/140987/Serpentinization-Carbon-and-Deep-Life
âThe Inevitable Journey to Beingâ - Russell (2013) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2012.0254
âSerpentinization as a Source of Energy at the Origin of Lifeâ - Russell (2010) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1472-4669.2010.00249.x
XIV. Nitrogen Fixation
âKinetics of Nitrate Reduction by Green Rustsâ - Hansen (2001) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169131700000296
âAbiotic Nitrate Reduction to Ammonium: Key Role of Green Rustâ - Hansen (1996) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es950844w
âInorganic Nitrogen Reduction and Stability Under Simulated Hydrothermal Conditionsâ - Brandes (2009) https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ast.2007.0187
âStable Abiotic Production of Ammonia from Nitrate in Komatiite-Hosted Hydrothermal Systems in the Hadean and Archean Oceansâ - Nishizawa (2021) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-163X/11/3/321
XV. Carbon Fixation
âA Hydrogen Dependent Geochemical Analogue of Primordial Carbon and Energy Fixationâ - Preiner (2020) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-020-1125-6
âNative Iron Reduces CO2 to Intermediates and End Products of the Acetyl CoA Pathwayâ - Varma (2018) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-018-0542-2
âThe Emergence and Early Evolution of Biological Carbon Fixationâ - Braakman (2012) https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1002455
âBioinspired CO2 Conversion by Iron Sulfide Catalysts Under Sustainable Conditionsâ - Roldan (2015) https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2015/cc/c5cc02078f
XVI. pH Gradients and Motive Force
âSteep pH Gradients and Directed Colloid Transport in a Microfluidic Alkaline Hydrothermal Poreâ - Moller (2017) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/anie.201610781
âCO2 Reduction Driven by pH Gradientâ - Hudson (2020) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2002659117
âProton Gradients at the Origins of Lifeâ - Lane (2017) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bies.201600217
âElectrochemistry at Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents: Utilization of the Thermodynamic Driving Force Towards the Autotrophic Origin of Lifeâ - Ooka (2018) https://chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/celc.201801432
âHydrothermal Focusing of Chemical and Chemiosmotic Energyâ - Nitschke (2009) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00239-009-9289-3
âProton Gradients and pH Oscillations Emerge from Heat Flow at the Microscaleâ - Keil (2017) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-02065-3
XVII. Modern Day Abiotic Synthesis at Vents
âAbiotic Amino Acid Synthesis in the Recesses of the Oceanic Lithosphereâ - Menez (2018) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-018-0684-z
âAbiogenic Hydrocarbon Production at Lost City Hydrothermal Fieldâ - Proskurowski (2008) https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1151194
XVIII. Stability with Salts & Divalent Cations
âPromotion of Protocell Self-Assembly by Mixed Amphiphiles at the Origin of Lifeâ - Jordan (2019) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-019-1015-y
âThe Impact of Salts on Single Chain Amphiphile Membranes and Implications for the Location of the Origin of Lifeâ - Maurer (2017) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/7/4/44
âSynthesis and Characterization of Amino Acid Decyl Esters as Early Membranes for the Origins of Lifeâ - Lago (2022) https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/12/9/858
âNucleobases Bind to and Stabilize Aggregates of a Prebiotic Amphiphileâ - Black (2013) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1300963110
âInhibitory Activity of Thermal Copolymers of Amino Acids for the Metal-Catalyzed Hydrolysis of RNAâ - Kawamura (2006) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0273117706004224
âPrebiotic Amino Acids Bind to and Stabilize Prebiotic Fatty Acid Membranesâ - Cornell (2019) https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1900275116
âInfluence of Metal Ions on Model Protoamphiphilic Vesicular Systemsâ - Joshi (2021) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/11/12/1413
[Compilerâs Note: You can also find articles using citric acid to stabilize membranes in the presence of divalent cations, and Szostak showed this allows template directed RNA replication to proceed sometime around 2017, I think, as well as papers synthesizing citric acid using Chromium 3+, with a downstream reaction of citric acid with Chromium 6+ to 3+, but I did not want to hunt all this down at the moment]
XIX. Phosphate
âMarine Phosphate Availability and the Chemical Origins of Lifeâ - Brady (2022) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-32815-x
âSerpentinization as a Route to Liberating Phosphorus on Habitable Worldsâ - Pasek (2022) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0016703722005130
âMicrofluidic Production of Pyrophosphate Catalyzed by Mineral Membranes with Steep pH Gradientsâ - Wang (2019) https://chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/chem.201805950
âPyrophosphate Synthesis in Iron Mineral Films and Membranes Simulating Prebiotic Submarine Hydrothermal Precipitatesâ - Barge (2014) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S001670371300690X
âA Prebiotic Basis for ATP as the Universal Energy Currencyâ - Pinna (2022) https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3001437
âAcetyl Phosphate as a Primordial Energy Currency at the Origin of Lifeâ - Whicher (2018) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11084-018-9555-8
XX. Complexity
âBrownian Ratchets of Life: Stochasticity Combined with Disequilibrium Produces Orderâ - Moore (2019) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/bies.201900076
âSelf-Organization in Precipitation Reactions Far From Equilibriumâ - Nakouzi (2016) https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/sciadv.1601144
âDissipative Self-assembly, Competition and Inhibition in a Self-Reproducing Protocell Modelâ - Post (2020) https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2020/sc/d0sc02768e
XXI. Autocatalysis
âPlausible Emergence of Autocatalytic Cycles Under Prebiotic Conditionsâ - Piotto (2019) https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/9/2/33
âAutocatalytic Chemical Networks at the Origins of Lifeâ - Xavier (2020) https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2019.2377
XXII. Waste
âPrebiotic Decluttering: The Thermodynamic Tailwind to Asymmetric Autocatalysisâ - Perovic (2023) https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/international-journal-of-astrobiology/article/prebiotic-decluttering-the-thermodynamic-tailwind-to-asymmetric-autocatalysis/21E5C1A3A813F80E51B9C87ED7BC41E3
âSynthetic Connectivity, Emergence, and Self-Regeneration in the Network of Prebiotic Chemistryâ - Wolos (2020) https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.aaw1955
I often encounter @Gary_Hurd on Facebook, but many will recognize him from Pandaâs Thumb, various sites about the Internet, or his own blog Stone and Bones. The man is walking (and typing) encyclopedia of references on topics in evolution, biochemistry, original of life, and more. I thought I might share some of that here for those interested.