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01 The Origin Lite and Evolutionary Biochemistry ALEKSANDR IVANOVICH OPARIN A Volurne Cornrnernorating the Filtieth Anniversary 01 the Publication 01 Proiskhozhdenie Zhizni and the Eightieth Birthday 01 A. I. Oparin 01 The Origin Li[e and Evolutionary Biochemistry Edited by K.Dose Institut für Biochemie Universität M ainz M ainz, Germany s. W. Fox Institute /or M olecular and C ellular Evolution University 0/ Miami Coral Gables, Florida G. A. Deborin A. N. Bakh Institute 0/ Biochemistry A cademy 0/ Sciences 0/ the USSR M OSCOW, USSR and T. E. Pavlovskaya A. N. Bakh Institute 0/ Biochemistry A cademy 0/ Sciences 0/ the USSR Moscow, USSR PLENUM PRESS· NEW YORK AND LONDON Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Main entry under title: The origin of life and evolutionary biochemistry. Includes bibliographies. 1. Chemical evolution. 2. Life - Origin. 1. Dose, Klaus, ed. [DNLM: 1. Bio chemistry. 2. Biogenesis. QH325 067] QH325.069 577 7+-10703 ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-2117-0 e-ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-2115-6 DOT: 10.1007/978-1-4684-2115-6 © 1974 Plenum Press, New York Softcover reprint ofthe hardcover Ist edition 1974 A Division of Plenum Publishing Corporation 227 West 17th Street, New York, N.Y. 10011 United Kingdom edition published by Plenum Press, London A Division of Plenum Publishing Company, Ltd. 4a Lower ] ohn Street, London WIR 3PD, England All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any me ans, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher CONTENTS Historica1 Introduction: A. I. Oparin and the Origin of Life 3 CHAPTERS IN HONOR OF "PROISKHOZHDENIE ZHIZNI" AND A. I. OPARIN PROTEIN STRUCTURE AND THE MOLECULAR EVOLUTION OF BIOLOGICAL ENERGY CONVERSION H. Ba1tscheffsky 9 CONDENSATION REACTIONS OF LYSINE IN THE PRESENCE OF POLYADENYLIC ACID L. K. Bjornson, R. M. Lernmon, and M. Ca1vin 21 CONSIDERATIONS OF THE ORIGIN OF SPONTANEOUS MUTATIONS S. E. Bres1er 29 PRE-ENZYMIC EMERGENCE OF BIOCHEMICAL METABOLISM R. Buvet 41 THE METHODS OF SCIENCE AND THE ORIGINS OF LIFE A. G. Cairns-Smith 53 PHOSPHOLIPID MONOLAYERS--AS A PROTOTYPE OF BIOLOGICAL MEMBRANES G. A. Deborin and A. D. Sorokina 59 PEPTIDES AND AMINO ACIDS IN THE PRIMORDIAL HYDROSPHERE K. Dose 69 AMINO ACIDS AND CARBOHYDRATES IN PRECAMBRIAN ROCKS I. A. Egorov and I. Z. Sergiyenko 79 THE SURFACES OF COACERVATE DROPS AND THE FORMATION OF COLONIES T. N. Evreinova, B. L. A11akhverdov, and V. I. Peshenko 89 v vi CONTENTS ON SOME PROBLEMS OF EVOLUTION OF THE PHOTOSYNTHETIC PIGMENT APPARATUS V. B. Evstigneev 97 AMMONIA: DID IT HAVE A ROLE IN CHEMICAL EVOLUTION? J. P. Ferris and D. E. Nicodem 107 COACERVATE DROPLETS, PROTEINOID MICROSPHERES, AND THE GENETIC APPARATUS S. W. Fox 119 ASPECTS OF THE EVOLUTION OF SOME SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES OF SELF-REGULATION OF PLANT METABOLISM G. Georgiev and N. Bakardjieva 133 PHOTOCHEMICAL FORMATION OF ORGANIC COMPOUNDS FROM MIXTURES OF SIMPLE GASES SIMULATING THE PRIMITIVE ATMOSPHERE OF THE EARTH W. Groth 143 THE IRON-SULPHUR PROTEINS: EVOLUTION OF A UBIQUITOUS PROTEIN FROM THE ORIGIN OF LIFE TO HIGHER ORGANISMS D. o. Hall, R. Cammack, and K. K. Rao 153 EVOLUTION AND ECOLOGY OF PHOSPHORUS METABOLISM M. Ha1mann 169 AMINO ACID SYNTHESIS BY GLOW DISCHARGE ELECTROLYSIS: A POSSIBLE ROUTE FOR PREBIOTIC SYNTHESIS OF AMINO ACIDS K. Harada 183 PREFIGURED ORDERING AND PROTOSELECTION IN THE ORIGIN OF LIFE D. H. Kenyon 207 LIFE'S BEGINNINGS--ORIGIN OR EVOLUTION? J. Keosian 221 CHEMICAL EVOLUTION OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS: MODELS AND HYPOTHESES A. A. Krasnovsky 233 COMPARATIVE STUDY OF PLANT ORGANISM GLUTAMINE SYNTHETASE W. L. Kretovich and Z. G. Evstigneeva 245 THE LIGHT DEPENDENT PROCESSES IN FUNGI: A POSSIBLE APPROACH TO SOME PROBLEMS OF PHOTOBIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION M. S. Kritsky 263 CONTENTS vii THE ROLE OF INORGANIC POLYPHOSPHATES IN CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION I. S. Kulaev 271 SUCROSE SYNTHETASE AND ITS PHYSIOLOGICAL ROLE IN THE STORAGE TISSUES A. L. Kursanov and O. A. Pavlinova 289 AMINO AND FATTY ACIDS IN CARBONACEOUS METEORITES K. A. Kvenvolden 301 ISOLATED MICROSYSTEMS IN EVOLUTION J. C. Lacey, Jr. and D. W. Mullins, Jr. 311 THE SEARCH FOR REMNANTS OF EARLY EVOLUTION IN PRESENT-DAY METABOLISM F. Lipmann 321 PRIMITIVE CONTROL OF CELLULAR METABOLISM M. A. Mitz 331 ON THE EVOLUTION OF MACROMOLECULES H. Mizutani, H. Okihana, M. Hasegawa, T. Yano, and H. Noda 339 THE COACERVATE-IN-COACERVATE THEORY OF THE ORIGIN OF LIFE V.J.A. Novak 355 SEDIMENTARY MINERALS UNDER REDUCING CONDITIONS L. E. Orgel 369 MICELLES AND SOLID SURFACES AS AMINO ACID POLYMERIZATION PROPAGATORS M. Paecht-Horowitz 373 POSSIBLE WAYS OF IDENTIFYING THE ABIOGENESIS OF BIOCHEMICALLY IMPORTANT COMPOUNDS T. E. Pavlovskaya 387 EVOLUTION OF MODELS FOR EVOLUTION D. L. Rohlfing 397 PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND SOME PROBLEMS OF EVOLUTION OF BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS A. B. Rubin 417 THE OPARIN THEORY AND SOME PROBLEMS OF EVOLUTION OF BIOENERGETIC SYSTEMS B. A. Rubin 427 viii CONTENTS AN EVOLUTIONARY MODEL FOR PREBIOTIC PHOSPHORYLATION A. W. Schwartz 435 THE ROLE OF SHOCK WAVES IN THE CHEMICAL EVOLUTION OF EARTH'S PRIMITIVE ATMOSPHERE A. Shaviv and A. Bar-Nun 445 ALEXANDER IVANOVITCH OPARIN AND THE ORIGIN OF LIFE: A RECOLLECTION AND APPRECIATION C. B. van Niel 459 THE ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF ENZYME CATALYSIS M. D. Williarns and J. L. Fox 461 OPARIN AND THE ORIGIN OF LIFE: COS MOLOGI CAL CONS IDE RATION S R. S. Young 469 List of Contributors 473 HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION: A. I. OPARIN AND THE ORIGIN OF LIFE A. I. OPARIN AND TRE ORIGIN OF LIFE The authors of papers in this vo1ume have joined in honoring the pioneering contributions of A1eksandr Ivanovich Oparin, whose first written work appeared ha1f-a-century ago, in 1924. In addi tion, many others who have been prominent in this fie1d of inquiry in recent years enthusiastica11y endorsed the preparation of a volume honoring the pioneering ideas and the pioneer. The problem of the origin of 1ife has intrigued man throughout recorded history. Unti1 1922, however, when the young Russian bio chemist, A. I. Oparin, ora11y presented to a meeting of the Russian Botanica1 Society the thesis that the origin of 1ife is an event governed by natural 1aws and is an ina1ienab1y integral part of the total process of the evolution of the Universe, this fie1d was generally considered as be10nging to re1igious faith rather than to natural science. Oparin was the first to emphasize that the evolution of car bonaceous compounds that occurred on the primitive Earth had to lead to the abiogenic synthesis of organic compounds--the components of 1iving systems. This bold yet rational thesis was received with interest by the scientific audience. Nevertheless, at that time peop1e cou1d hard1y imagine the who1e significance of Oparin's concepts. The first booklet titled "Proiskhozdenie zhizni" (1924) has out lined a program of scientific research, thus demonstrating that the problem of the origin of life is as accessib1e to observationa1 and experimental approach as any other fie1d of natural science. This b1ueprint stimu1ated many scientists in various fie1ds in different countries to initiate and deve10p broad researches in biochemistry, pa1eonto1ogy, geo1ogy, chemistry, astronomy, etc. and to re1ate their studies to the new scientific discip1ine of the origin of 1ife. To our best know1edge, fourteen years e1apsed before experiments express1y testing the concept of the origin of 1ife-re1ated substances were pub1ished in the scientific literature. The author of those first experiments is one of the contributors to this vo1ume (p. 143). Substantial publie awareness of prospeets for experimental progress required yet another fifteen years. In the fo11owing twenty years 3