Abstract
Gas mixtures simulated primitive earth atmospheres were irradiated with high energy protons, and amino acids in the products were analyzed by liquid chromatography, gas-liquid chromatography and liquid ionization mass spectrometry. When a mixture of carbon monoxide, nitrogen and water was irradiated with 2.8-40MeV protons generated with accelerators, various kinds of amino acids were detected in the products. Hydrogen cyanide, which is believed to be a precursor of amino acids, was determined with a cyanide-selective electrode. G-value of glycine was about 0.02 when either methane or carbon monoxide was used as a carbon source in irradiation experiments. The present results show that cosmic rays are more effective energy sources for prebiotic synthesis of amino acids than conventionally considered energy sources like spark discharges.
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