Abstract
Following the procedure of Schramm for the synthesis of polynucleotides and polysaccharides, homopolymers ofdl-leucine,dl-phenylalanine,dl-serine, anddl-valine have been prepared in yields of 13 to 57 % through the mediation of a polymetaphosphate ester. Copolymers of the amino acids also have been prepared in lower yields (4–5 %). Infrared spectra show that the polymers are not diketopiperazines and that the polymers ofdl-leucine,dl-phenylalanine, anddl-valine are polypeptides. Conversions of as much as 57% and degrees of polymerization of approximately 12 were obtained for polyleucine. Small peptides containing possibly 2 to 3 leucine residues were detected and isolated as possible intermediates in the leucine polymerization reaction. For the polymerization ofdl-valine, a temperature of 60°C, a reaction time of 10–24 h, and a ratio of polymetaphosphate ester to amino acid of 3:1 appeared to give the best results. The Schramm procedure was initially suggested as a chemical evolution model for the formation of biological polymers under prebiotic conditions. Although the significance of this reaction to prebiological organic chemistry may be questioned, it still offers a mechanistic model for the study of the synthetic reactions involving polyphosphates which are indirectly relevant to abiotic molecular evolution and the problem of the origin of life.
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Nooner, D.W., Oró, J. Direct synthesis of polypeptides. J Mol Evol 3, 79–88 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01795978
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01795978