Stability of guanine adsorbed in a clay mineral under gamma irradiation at temperatures (77 and 298 K): Implications for chemical evolution studies

Abstract

Chemical evolution is a physical and chemical preamble prior the appearance of life. In these processes, clay minerals might have played an important role on the early Earth. The relevance of these solids in the emergence of life is due to their ancient origin, wide distribution, and especially, their physico-chemical properties. Clays, therefore, are considered the most likely inorganic materials to promote organic reactions in the primitive Earth. John D. Bernal suggested clays as concentrators of biological precursor molecules, as catalysis and clays might protect these molecules from high-energy radiation. On the other hand, nucleic acid bases and their derivatives are important compounds in biological systems. Their synthesis and stability in environmental conditions are of paramount importance in chemical evolution. The aim of this work is to extend the knowledge of the role of clays in the prebiotic epoch in relation to the behavior of guanine, a nucleic acid base, adsorbed in a clay mineral. To this end, we studied its adsorption in clays, its site of binding, and its survival under a high radiation field and at different temperatures and pH. The results showed guanine adsorption onto clays increased with the decreasing of the pH. This result could be explained by electrostatic forces between guanine positively charged at an acid pH and the negatively charged interlamellar channel of the clay. X-ray diffractograms showed that guanine is adsorbed onto the clay at the interlayer channel. To study the survival of guanine in a high radiation field, the system guanine-clay was irradiated under different irradiation doses, temperatures, and pH. The results showed that more than 90% of the guanine survives, and when the radiolysis is made without clay, the decomposition of this molecule occurs at low irradiation doses. The radiolysis performed at 77 K showed very low decomposition, which is important in cometary chemistry. These results show the protection role of the clay toward ionizing radiation of an organic compound adsorbed into it.