Mimicking the Prebiotic Acidic Hydrothermal Environment: One-Pot Prebiotic Hydrothermal Synthesis of Glucose Phosphates

Prebiotic acidic hydrothermal conditions were mimicked, and biological phosphate esters such as glucose-1-phosphate, glucose-6-phosphate, and glucose-di-phosphate were synthesized under hydrothermal conditions, in the presence of a mixture of montmorillonite and kaolinite. Phosphorus was incorporated into the biological world under hydrothermal conditions, leading to the formation of phosphate esters. The synthesis was successfully carried out within a temperature range of 100-160 degrees C. Both isomers of glucose phosphate were obtained, with some detectable amount of glucose-di-phosphate. Selected mixture of montmorillonite and kaolinite was found to be essential for the reaction. No products were detected without this catalyst mixture. (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 22: 186-191, 2011; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary. com. DOI 10.1002/hc.20675