Bio-Chemical Evolution of life

Work assigned by – Mr. Bibin

Mathew(Head of Biology department)
Presentation prepared By- Aditya Singh
Chauhan.
 What is life ?
Life is inherent capacity that an organism possesses to maintain and
reproduce itself .

History of life
The history of life comprises of two events –
1. Origin of life (Bio Chemical Evolution)
2. Evolution of life ( Organic Evolution)
Origin of Universe
There are several theories regarding the
origin of universe but the most accepted
is big bang Theory.
Big- Bang Theory
=>Proposed by Abbe Lemaitre in 1931.
=>According to Big Bang theory Universe was
formed 20 billion years ago.
=>Cosmic matter was in a condensed form. A fiery
explosion took place which broke the condensed
matter and Scattered its fragments into space at an
enormous velocity , making “big bang” sound.
=>Immediately after the explosion expanded
rapidly from a size of a pin to about 2000 times
the size of the sun.
Origin of our Solar System and our
Earth
=>Nebular Hypothesis is one of the
most popular hypothesis to explain
the origin of our solar system.
=> Proposed the Kant and revised
later by Laplace.
=>According to this Hypothesis
our solar System was probably
created about 4.5 to 5 billion years
ago when the gaseous cloud
solar nebula was formed .
=> As the cloud condensed the central
mass formed the sun and the
peripheral celestial bodies .
=> The earth was supposed to have
formed about 4.5 billion years ago.
 Theories of the Origin of Life
1.Theory of special creation.-Father Suarez

2.Theory of Spontaneous Generation (Abiogenesis or Autogenesis)-

Thales, Plato, Aristotle
# Against this theory ( Biogenesis)- Francesco Redi, Lazzaro
Spallanzani and Louis Pasteur

3. Theory of Panspermia or Cosmozoic theory or Spore Theory-

Richter, Helmholz , Arrhenius

4. Theory of Eternity of life .- Preyer

5. Modern Theory or Oparin- Haldane Theory of Origin of life #

Most accepted theory of origin of life
Oparin- Haldane Theory of Origin of
Life
According to this theory life originated on early earth through Physico-Chemical processes
( Atoms  Inorganic molecules  Small Organic molecules  Macro Organic molecules 
Most primitive form of life).
Hence according to this theory life originated from non-living matter(Abiogenesis).And this
happens only once in life history of earth due to the extreme conditions of Primitive earth.
The theory is given by A. I. Oparin and J.B.S Haldane.

The Theory gives idea of 3 types of evolution=>

A. Chemical Evolution (Chemogeny) -: The formation of complex organic molecules from
simpler inorganic molecules through chemical reactions in the oceans during the early history of
the Earth; the first step in the development of life on this planet .
B. Biological Evolution (Biogeny) - : The Formation of earliest life form that can self
replicate from complex organic and inorganic molecules in the ocean during the early
history of the Earth.
C. Organic Evolution - : Organic evolution is the change in inherited traits over successive
generations in populations of organisms.
Primitive Atmosphere: Recent Atmosphere:

1. It was reducing (without free oxygen) 1. It is oxidizing (with free oxygen) atmosphere.
atmosphere.
2. Its most common element was hydrogen. 2. It has about 20.95% oxygen and less than 0.04% of
.
hydrogen.
3. It had no ozone layer therefore ultraviolet 3. It has thick ozone layer that prevents the ultraviolet
radiation freely reached the earth. radiation reaching the earth.
4. It was very hot . 4. It has moderate temperature.
5. It was favourable to origin of life. It 5. It is not favourable to origin of life. It does not allow
allowed chemical evolution. chemical evolution.
 A. Chemical Evolution (Chemogeny)
1. The Atomic Phase-:Early earth had innumerable atoms of those atoms which are
essential for the formation of protoplasm.
2. Formation of inorganic molecules -: Free atoms combined to form H2, N2, H2O,
CH4, NH3 and CO2.
=>Hydrogen atoms were most numerous and highly reactive in primitive atmosphere.
( Hydrogen combines with O2 to form leaving no free Oxygen – Reducing Atm).
=>Water and Ammonia were probably the first molecules.
3. Formation of Simple organic Molecules (Monomers)-: The early inorganic
molecules interacted and produced simple organic molecules such as simple sugars,
nitrogenous bases, amino acids, glycerol , fatty acids.

CH4 + CO2 + H2O  Sugars + Glycerol + Fatty Acids

CH4 + H2O + HCN + NH3  Purines + Pyrimidines
CH4 + CO2 + H2O + NH3  Amino Acids
 
Torrential rains must have fallen . As the water rushed down ,it must have dissolved
away and carried with it salts and minerals, and ultimately accumulated in the form of
oceans.
Some external sources must have been acting on the mixture for reactions .These sources
might be –
i. Solar radiations like UV, X-rays etc.
ii. Energy from electrical discharges like lightning.
iii. High energy radiations probably from unstable isotopes on the primitive earth.

=>A soup like broth of chemicals formed in the ocean termed as ‘prebiotic soup’ which living
cells are believed to have appeared .
=>Once formed ,the organic molecules accumulated in water because their degradation was
extremely slow in the absence of any life or enzyme catalyst.
Experimental Verification – Urey and Miller’
Experiment
Stanley Miller and Harold Urey demonstrated it clearly that UV radiation or electrical discharge or heat or
combination of these can produce complex organic compounds from a mixture of Methane, Ammonia and
Hydrogen.
Points to be noted –
1. The ratio of methane, ammonia and
hydrogen in Miller’s experiment was
2:2:1.
2.Miller circulated these 3 gases along
with water vapours in air tight apparatus.
3.To mimic lightening electric discharge
by two tungsten electrodes as sources of
energy .
4.He circulated the gases continuously for
one week and then analyzed the chemical
composition of the liquid inside the
apparatus.
RESULT- He found that large number of
organic compounds including some amino
acids such as Alanine , Glycine and Aspartic acid.
Other substances include – Urea , HCN, Lactic acid
acetic acid etc.
4. Formation of Complex organic Molecules (Macromolecules)-:
A variety of amino acids, fatty acids , hydrocarbons and other simple organic compounds accumulated to
form complex organic compound.
In the primitive atmosphere electrical discharge , lightening , solar energy , ATP and
Polyphosphates might have provided the source of energy for polymerization reactions of Organic
synthesis.
Sugar + Sugar  Polysaccharides
Fatty acids + Glycerol  Fats
Aminoacids +Aminoacids  Proteins
Nitrogenous Bases + Pentose Sugars + Phosphates  Nucleotides
Nucleotides + Nucleotides  Nucleic acids
B. Biological Evolution (Biogeny)
Conditions for the origin of life –
i. There must have been a supply of replicators, i.e self producing molecules.
ii. Copying of these replicators must have been subject to error through mutation.( High temperature in early earth
would fulfilled the requirement of mutation.)
iii. The System of replicators must have required a continuous supply of free energy and partial isolation from the
general environment.
1. Protobionts or Protocells-
These are at least two types of fairly simple lab produced structures –
A. Oparin’s Coacervates
B. Fox’s Microspheres
A .Coacervates
Hypothesis proposed by Oparin ,early
protocells could have been a coacervates.
Important points –
1.These were non living structures formed
by accumulation of Carbs , Proteins, Fats
and nucleic acids .
2. This structure is surrounded by the film
of water around it which functions as
physical barriers between organic molecules and their surroundings.
3. They could selectively take in material
from surroundings and can incorporate into their structures.
4.They are simple but persistent in organization.
5. They have ability to grow in size.
6.Some coacervates contain enzymes that direct a specific type of chemical reaction.
 B. Microspheres
Hypothesis proposed by Sidney fox ,early
protocells could have been a Microspheres.
A Microspheres is a non living collection of organic
macromolecules with double layered outer boundary.
Fox demonstrated the ability to build microspheres from
proteinoids. Proteinoids are proteins like structure
consisting of branched chain of amino acids.
Points to be noted –
1. Microspheres are formed when proteinoids are placed
in boiling water and slowly allowed to cool .
2. Some proteinoid form double walled structures.
3.Microsphere swell and shrink depending on the
osmotic pressure.
4. They also display internal movement(Streaming)
similar to that exhibited by cells.
5. Some proteinoid present inside the microspheres
behaves as enzymes.
6.They have the ability of motility, growth ,binary
fission,budding and fragmentation.
7. Using ATP as a source of energy they can direct the
formation of polypeptides and nucleic acid.
 2. Origin of Prokaryotes –
=>Prokaryotes were originated from protocells about 3.5 billion years ago in the sea. These cells are
comparable with bacteria of today.
=>These cells might be anaerobic because free oxygen was absent absent in the atmosphere.
=> They do not have nuclear membrane ,cytoskeleton or complex organelles.
=>They divide by binary fission.
=> Fossils are found in Stromatolites.
3. Evolution of Modes of Nutrition –
A. Heterotrophs – The earliest prokaryotes presumably obtained energy by the fermentation of organic
molecules from the sea broth in reducing Atmosphere.
B. Autotrophs – Due to rapid increase in the number of heterotrophs the nutrient from the sea water
begain to disappear and finally exhausted. That lead to the evolution of autotrophs.
i. Chemoautotrophs – Preparing organic molecules from inorganic molecules and releaes CO2 in
atmosphere.
ii. Photoautotrophs – Evolution of chlorophyll molecule enabled certain bacteria to utilize light energy .
They were anaerobic photoautotrophs and did not use water as hydrogen source.(Similar to present day
Sulphur bacteria).
# Aerobic Photoautotrophs used water as the source of hydrogen . They released lots of Oxygen in the
atmosphere.( Present day Cyanobacteria) Appeared 2.5 years ago.
4. Oxygen revolution and Formation of Ozone layer –
As the number of Aerobic Photoautotrophs increased , Oxygen was released in the sea and
atmosphere.
This react with atmospheric gases to give today like composition of atmosphere
CH4 + 2O2  CO2 + 2H2O
4NH3 + 3O2  2N2 + 6H2O
As oxygen accumulated in the atmosphere,
the ultra violet light changed some of
oxygen into ozone.
2O2 + O2  2O3
Ozone layer blocks UV light and leaving
the visible light as the main source of energy.
5. Origin of Prokaryotes.
Eukaryotes developed from primitive
prokaryotes cells about 1.5 billion years
ago.
There are two views regarding this
A. Symbiotic origin
According to Margulis , some anaerobic predator host cells
engulfed primitive aerobic bacteria but did not digest it.
These aerobic bacteria established as symbionts inside the
engulfing cell.
The predator host cell that engulfed aerobic bacteria became
animal cell. The predator host cell that engulfed both aerobic
bacteria and blue-green bacteria became Plant cell.

B. Origin by invagination .
According to this view cell organelles of eukaryotic cells
might have originated by invagination of surface membrane of
primitive prokaryotic cell.
Thank You