Serine octamer cluster
The Serine octamer cluster in
prebiotic
conditions.
The cluster is not only unusually stable but also unusual because the clusters have a strong homochiral preference. A
racemic serine solution produces a minimum amount of cluster and with solutions of both enantiomers a maximum amount is formed of both homochiral D-Ser8 and L-Ser8. In another experiment cluster formation of a racemic mixture with deuterium
enriched L-serine results in a product distribution with hardly any 50/50 D/L clusters but a preference for either D or L enantioenriched clusters.
A model for
enantiopure
L-serine. This model has been experimentally verified.
Chiral transmission is assumed to take place through so-called substitution reactions of serine clusters. In these reactions, a serine monomer in a cluster can be replaced by another small biologically relevant molecule. For instance Ser8 reacts with glucose
(Glc) to the Ser6 + Glc3 + Na+ cluster. Moreover, the cluster of synthetic L-glucose with Ser8 is less abundant than that with the biological D-glucose.
See also
- Other magic numbers in chemistry: methane clathrate, Magic angle spinning
- Other stable clusters in: aluminium superatoms
References
- PMID 11510829.)
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - PMID 16404754.)
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