Life in a nutshell : characterizing biotic and abiotic drivers in the chemistry of natural organic matter

Schmitt-Kopplin Ph.

• Technical University Munich TUM, Weihenstephan, Freising, Germany,
• Helmholtz Munich, Oberschleißheim, Germany,
• Max Plank Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, MPE, Garching, Germany

Email : schmitt-kopplin tum.de

Presentation

Understanding complex organic materials on a molecular level in Bio- and/or Geosystems is a huge challenge in modern sciences and implies constant development and adaptation of modern ultrahigh-resolving analytical technology. We aim to present concepts for the chemical diversity of chemical mixtures such as natural organic matter resulting from / subjected to biotic and abiotic processes :

Life and Living systems (Biomes) from ubiquitous microbiomes through higher organisms to entire ecosystems. Chemical complexity (metabolome) is ruled by the genomes.

After-life involving generally globally transformed organic matter generating new complex materials not found in any database on short term or geological time scales to geopolymers in diagenetic processes

Pre-Life complex chemistry involves prebiotic chemistry following the only rules of abiotic chemical reactions. These complex chemistry is also found in meteoritic samples and from asteroid return samples (HAYABUSA2, OSIRIS ReX ). From this highest diverse and complex materials emerged molecules crucial for the early steps of life.

References

(1) Ph. Schmitt-Kopplin, D. Hemmler, F. Moritz, R. D. Gougeon, M. Lucio, M. Meringer, C. Müller, M. Harir, N. Hertkorn, Systems Chemical Analytics : Introduction to the challenges of chemical complexity analysis, Faraday discussions, 2019, DOI : 10.1039/c9fd00078j

(2) Naraoka H, et al. Soluble organic molecules in samples of the carbonaceous asteroid (162173) Ryugu. Science. 2023, 379(6634):eabn9033.

(3) Schmitt-Kopplin, Ph. et al. 2024 Soluble organic matter Molecular atlas of Ryugu reveals cold hydrothermalism on C-type asteroid parent body, Nature Communication 14(1) DOI10.1038/s41467-023-42075-y

(4) Diederich Ph, T. Geisberger, Y. Yan, C. Seitz, A. Ruf, C. Huber, N Hertkorn, Ph Schmitt-Kopplin Formation, stabilization and fate of acetaldehyde and higher aldehydes in an autonomously changing prebiotic system emerging from acetylene Communications Chemistry, 2023, 6(1) 3