Origin of Life

All forms of life created by God

Hindu Concept: Lord Brahma created

living world at once.

Christian and Islam Belief: God created

universe, plants, animals and humans.

No scientific basis
 When did life begin?
• Stromatolites (3.5 bill. Years)
• Rocks with distinctive layer
structure.
• Look identical to living mats of
microbes.
Stromatolites

• What is Stromatolites
• Cynobacteria forms a matrix on
sediments
• A new layer is deposited on the top
• Bacreria grow up through new layer
 Life to Earth?
 Proposal: “Elements of life”
exist everywhere around the
universe
 Life on earth started when
these ‘Elements’ form here,
may be by a meteorite.
 It also suggests that these
elements might bind to form
polymers.

Fragments of the Murchison meteorite, a 4.5-billion-year-old chondrite that fell to

Australia in 1969, contain more than 80 amino acids, and other key organic molecules
including lipids, simple sugars, and nitrogenous bases such as uracil.
Conditions on early Earth

• Reducing atmosphere on the primitive Earth. No free oxygen (O2)

• Free hydrogen (H2) and saturated hydrides (CH4, NH3 and H2O)
• Energy for chemical reactions between these gases could come
from electric discharge in storms or solar energy.
• The Earth’s surface temperature probably hotter than today.
Simulated conditions thought
Experiment:
to exist on the early Earth In 1953 Stanley Miller and Harold Urey
performed the first experiment that
produced amino acids in what was
assumed to be a pre-life atmosphere.
They passed a mixture of water vapor,
Atmosphere methane, hydrogen and ammonia gases
Hydrogen through an electric arc to simulate what
Cloud Lighting would happen if these gases were
Methane
Ammonia
subjected to lightning.

Result:
10 biologic amino acid types
Rain 25 non-biologic amino acid types
Formaldehyde
Sugars

Considered to be the classic

Ocean experiment on the origin of life
 Monomer to Polymer

Monomer:
• Building block of life
• Must for life to evolve
• How did monomer form polymer

Requirement for Polymerization:

• Energy source: to drive the reaction
• Concentration: to bring the materials together
• Catalyst: to make the reaction happens
 Polymerization sources on Early Earth
Energy source
• Volcanos
• Lighting
• UV radiation

Concentration:
Clay forms sedimentary Scums, evaporation
• Clay and freezing on ocean
particles called platelets
• Evaporation which are very small, surface concentrate
• Freezing flat and with negative the monomers.
charge
• scums

Catalyst:
Metal ions Zinc and Origin of Life
copper acts as catalyst
Where possibly life begin?
Land:
Unlikely as no O2
No ozone: UV destroys molecular bond

Shallow ponds:
Once favored, full of organic material. Chemical reactions near
When evaporated, organic chemical concentration deep-sea vents: Considered
the most likely sites where
increases making it easier to form complex molecules. life on Earth originated
Lack of sufficient energy.

Deep-sea vents/hot springs

DNA evidence suggests that early organisms survived in
conditions similar to deep-sea vents Fossil Evidence:
Plenty of chemical energy available 3.5 Byr Australian rocks in
sea vent shows Cell Like
structure
 What is required to make a cell?
• DNA: Replicate, store and pass information
• Proteins: Coded by DNA
• Phospholipids: Membrane

• RNA has the ability to copy

itself
• RNA shows enzymic (catalytic)
Catalytic RNA molecule that joins together and replicate
properties
• Polynucleotides are very good
for storing and transmitting
information.
• RNA can be converted to DNA,
Reverse transcriptase found in RNA Virus like HIV

RNA was probably the first hereditary molecule

RNA World
 Origin of Membranes in the first cell
Phospholipids are insoluble in water. When mixed with water, they
spontaneously form microscopic lipid aggregates with their
hydrophobic moieties in contact with each other and their
hydrophilic groups interacting with the surrounding water.
Lipid Micelle Liposome

Thus, membranes were possibly formed and encapsulated all the components of a
simple prokaryotic cell.

Origin of Mitochondria
Endosymbiotic Theory – symbiotic bacteria
in eukaryote cell
• Separate DNA
• Inner membrane = bacterial membrane
• Bacteria-like ribosomes3
In-folding of cell membrane:
Origin of Nucleus & E. R.
Mitochondria & Plastid
Summary
 Phylogenetic Relationships
All living organisms fall into one of
three large groups (kingdoms, or
domains).
• Two large groups of
prokaryotes are Archaebacteria
(Primitive) and Eubacteria
(True).
• Eubacteria are biochemically
well characterized.
• Archaebacteria are less
characterized and found in
extreme environments—salt
lakes, hot springs, highly acidic
bogs, and the ocean depths.
• All eukaryotic organisms
evolved from the same branch
that gave rise to
Archaebacteria.
Characteristic Prokaryotic Eukaryotic
Size Generally small Generally large
(1-10 µm) (5-100 µm)

Genome Nucleoid, DNA not DNA complexed with

surrounded by proteins, surrounded
membrane by nuclear envelope
Cell Division Fission or budding Mitosis & Meiosis
Organelles Absent Membrane bound
organelles
Metabolism No Mitochondria Mitochondria
Cytoskeleton None Microtubules, Actin &
filaments
Intracellular None Vesicular transport,
Movement Endocytosis,
Phagocytosis
References
1. CAMPBELL B I O L O G Y (9th Edition)
Section; Unit 4, Chapter 25
Jane B. ReeceLisa A. Urry
Michael L. Cain
Steven A. Wasserman
Peter V. Minorsky
Robert B. Jackson

Lehninger
PRINCIPLES OF BIOCHEMISTRY (4th Edition)
Chapter 1
David L. Nelson
Michael M. Cox )