SARDAR BAHADUR KHAN WOMEN UNIVERSITY (SBK)

ASSIGNMENT: Theory of Chemical Origin of Life

SUBJECT: Evolution

SUBMITTED BY: NIDA YOUSAF, MEHAK MEHMOOD,

SANA ABDUL MUHAMMAD, SHABNUM EJAZ, NAHEED
QAMAR AND FATIMA GHOUS BAKASH

SUBMITTED TO: MISS AMBREEN

Contents:
1. Origin of life:
2. Theories of the origin of life
3. Theory of Chemical Origin of Life
4. Oparin Haldane theory
5. J.B.S Haldane
6. The Miller–Urey experiment
 Origin and evolution of life
Origin of life:
The origin of life means the emergence of heritable and
evolvable self-reproduction. “Origin of Life” is a very complex
subject, and oftentimes controversial. Two opposing scientific
theories that existed on this complex subject for a long time
were the so-called intelligent design and creationism. The big
bang theory of the origin of the Universe gave new ideas about
the topic of biological evolution. It has been hypothesized that
complex life-forms on Earth, including humans, arose over a
period of time from simple bacteria like tiny cells by a process
of self-organization akin to the evolution of the Universe by
self-organization of simple material structures (i.e.,
fundamental particles produced by the big bang) toward more
and more complex structures. There are several theories about
the origin of life.
 It is presumed that the universe came into existence with a
single titanic explosion called big bang about 15000 million
year ago.
 The fragments of the fire ball expanded and cooled to give
rise to many celestial bodies.
 This results in the formation of solar system consisting of sun
and planets.
 The Earth originated about 4.6 billion years ago.
 Earlier life was thought to be created by some super natural
power.
 Origin of life on Earth is also called protobiogenesis.
Theories of the origin of life:
1. Theory of special creation
2. Cosmozoic theory (panspermia
theory)
3. Theory of spontaneous generation
or theory of abiogenesis
4. Theory of biogenesis
5. Oparin-Haldane theory of chemical evolution of life.
Theory of Chemical Origin of Life:
Several models for the origin of life have been suggested. The first
'modern' model for the origin of life was presented in the 1923
independently by the Russian biochemist A. I. Oparin and later
supported by the British evolutionary biologist J. B. S. Haldane in 1928.
The Oparin and Haldane theory is known as biochemical theory for the
origin of life.
Oparin Haldane theory:
 The Russian scientist Alexander Ivanovich Oparin (1924) and
British scientist J.B.S Haldane (1929).
 Process of chemical evolution can be divided into three
steps.
Origin of earth and primitive atmosphere:
When earth was broken from sun, it was a glowing fire and a
rotating cloud of hot gasses, vapors of various elements, pieces
of rocks and metals called nebulous. As the earth was moving
away from sun, the temperature slowly decreased. This led to
condensation of gases. The heavy elements (iron, nickel) sank
to the center and form solid core of earth. Lightest elements
(He, H, O, N, C) occupied atmosphere of the earth.
Formation of ammonia, water and methane:
The earth was very hot initially and so the atoms could not
combine with each other easily. It contains H, O, N and C.
Hydrogen was very reactive, it combines with nitrogen to form
ammonia, with oxygen to form water, with carbon to form
methane. As temperature is high ammonia and methane
remained as gas and water as steam. As temperature decrease
steam condensed to water which results in rain and earth
become cold. Water gradually accumulated and this led to the
formation of rivers, sea lakes etc. Thus, the first chemicals
formed on the earth were water, ammonia, methane etc.
Synthesis of simple organic compound:
Next step is formation of micro molecules. When temperature
of earth gradually cooled down then the highly reactive free
radical’s CH and CH2 condensed to form variety of saturated
and unsaturated hydrocarbon. Hydrocarbon, ammonia, water
show condensation, polymerization, reduction and oxidation.
This results into formation of various biologically active
molecules like monosaccharides, amino acids, purines,
pyrimidines, fatty acids and glycerol etc.
J.B.S Haldane:
J.B.S Haldane described the sea containing molecules of organic
substances in abundance as “the hot dilute soup or primitive
broth”.
Formation of complex organic compounds:
The hot dilute soup was sterile and oxygen free. Simple organic
compound come together, form colloids to form complex
compound like polysaccharides, proteins, nucleosides, fats and
nucleotides. The protein molecules formed by polymerization
of amino acids (protoprotein). The formation of protein
molecules is considered as a land mark in the origin of life.
formation of nucleic acid:
Formation of protobionts or precells:
The nucleic acid along with inorganic and organic molecules
formed the first form of life precells or protobionts. Proteins
formed colloidal hydrophilic complexes surrounded by water
molecules. Oparin and Sidney Fox demonstrated the formation
of this aqueous suspension of polymers. Oparin called these
aggregates as cocervates while Sidney fox called them
Protenoids or Microspheres
Formation of first cell:
This was significant step in transformation of precells into cell.
E Biological evolution:
The first cell or primitive cells were marine and heterotrophic in
nature. Growth and multiplication of these cells caused
depletion of food and increase in Co2 due to fermentation. This
led to development of chromophores. This event help to
transform heterotrophs to autotrophs. Due to release of
oxygen as a byproduct of photosynthesis, the primitive
reducing atmosphere was slowly and gradually converted into
oxidizing atmosphere.
• The Miller–Urey experiment:
or Urey–Miller experiment was an experiment that simulated
the conditions thought at the time to be present on the early
Earth, and tested for the occurrence of chemical origins of life.
Specifically, the experiment tested Alexander Oparin's and J. B.
S. Haldane's hypothesis that conditions on the primitive Earth
favored chemical reactions that synthesized more complex
organic compounds from simpler organic precursors.
Considered to be the classic experiment concerning the
experimental abiogenesis, it was conducted in 1953 by Stanley
Miller and
Harold Urey at the University of Chicago and later the
University of California, San Diego and published the following

year
The experiment used water (H2O), methane (CH4), ammonia
(NH3), and hydrogen (H2). The chemicals were all sealed inside
a sterile array of glass flasks and flasks connected in a loop,
with one flask half-full of liquid water and another flask
containing a pair of electrodes. The liquid water was heated to
induce evaporation, sparks were fired between the electrodes
to simulate lightning through the atmosphere and water vapor,
and then the atmosphere was cooled again so that the water
could condense and trickle back into the first flask in a
continuous cycle.
• Within a day, the mixture had turned pink in color, and at the
end of two weeks of continuous operation, Miller and Urey
observed that as much as 10–15% of the carbon within the
system was now in the form of organic compounds. Two
percent of the carbon had formed amino acids that are used to
make proteins in living cells, with glycine as the most abundant.
Sugars were also formed. Nucleic acids were not formed within
the reaction. 18% of the methane-molecules became bio-
molecules. The rest turned into hydrocarbons like bitumen.
With these results, the theory of gradual chemical evolution
was accepted. This experiment gave the other scientists to
piece the remaining pieces together.
DRAWBACKS OF UREY MILLER EXPERIMENT
• By examining rocks ―dated‖ to be 3.7 billion years old,
geologists determined that earth had an oxygenic atmosphere.
• Oxygen is an ―oxidizing‖ agent and would inhibit chemical
evolution.
• Experiment produced a mixture of right-handed & left-
handed amino acids, but in nature left-handed ones
predominate.
• Now it is thought that the atmosphere of the early earth was
not rich in methane and ammonia — essential ingredients in
Miller's experiments.
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