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Dr Wächtershäuser, a chemist by training, has been an international patent lawer in Munich since 1970. He has published numerous articles in organic chemistry, genetic engineering and patent law, and has made at least two significant contributions to evolutionary theory: the origins of perception and cognition, and the origin of life.
One of the key ideas advanced by Wächtershäuser is that an early form of metabolism predated genetics. Metabolism here means a cycle of chemical reactions that produce energy in a form that can be harnessed by other processes. The idea is that once a primitive metabolic cycle was established, it began to produce ever more complex compounds.
Wächtershäuser has hypothesized a special role for acetic acid, a simple combination of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen found in vinegar. Acetic acid is part of the citric acid cycle that is fundamental to metabolism in cells.
Some of the fundamental ideas can be summarized in the following brief recipe for life:
More technically, Wächtershäuser hypothesized the following steps for producing proteins:
Both acetic acid and pyruvic acid are key chemicals in the citric acid cycle.
In 1997, Wächtershäuser and Claudia Huber mixed carbon monoxideCarbon monoxide chemical formula C O, is a colourless, odourless, flammable and highly toxic gas. It is a major product of the incomplete combustion of carbon and carbon-containing compounds. Sources Carbon monoxide has many common sources. The exhaust of, hydrogen sulfideProperties General Name Hydrogen sulfide Chemical formula H S Appearance Colourless gas Physical Formula weight 34. 1 amu Melting point 187 K (-86 °C) Boiling point 213 K (-60 °C) Solubility 0. 33 g in 100g water Thermochemistry ΔH0 -20. 5 kJ/ mol &, nickel sulfide, and iron sulfide particles at 100°C and demonstrated that amino acidIn chemistry, an amino acid is any molecule that contains both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. In biochemistry, this shorter and more general term is frequently used to refer to alpha amino acids: those amino acids in which the amino and carbs could form. The following year, using the same ingredients, they were able to produce peptidePeptides are the family of molecules formed from the linking, in a defined order, of various amino acids. The link between one amino acid residue and the next is an amide bond, and is sometimes referred to as a peptide bond. An amide bond is somewhat shors.