Dresden 2026 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 8: Systems and Networks Biophysics

BP 8.2: Talk

Monday, March 9, 2026, 17:00–17:15, BAR/0106

Polymerization of prebiotic building blocks in a wet-dry cycling system — •Almuth Schmid — LMU, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, München

When it comes to the question on how life could have emerged on an early Earth, not only the setting plays an important role but also the chemistry that helped forming the first building blocks of life. Prebiotic chemistry is limited in multiple ways since many of the common catalysts life uses nowadays are too complex to have been present in such an early stage. In addition, the existing compounds were diluted and only available in low concentration. To overcome these problems, systems like wet-dry cycles can help accumulating molecules while at the same time lowering the reaction activation barrier.[1] In addition, amino acids promote RNA copolymerization more than 100-fold via acid-base catalysis, starting from prebiotically plausible ribonucleoside-2',3'-cyclic phosphates.[2] MD simulations and X-ray crystallography confirmed that water is still present in the dry state, limiting the condensation reaction and hydrolyzing the material. Preliminary experiments showed that by using ammonium salts instead of sodium salts, including nucleotides and hydroxide to adjust the pH, overall longer polymers and yields 5-fold higher than before were obtained. Expanding this adapted wet/dry cycling system with an NH3/CO2 enriched atmosphere [3] would re-create a day and night rhythm on the early Earth, providing a prebiotic way to synthesize RNA.

Keywords: origin of life; early Earth; wet/dry cycling; ribonucleic acid; polymerization