Biology
Scientific paper
Nov 2002
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2002esasp.518..109b&link_type=abstract
In: Proceedings of the First European Workshop on Exo-Astrobiology, 16 - 19 September 2002, Graz, Austria. Ed.: Huguette Lacoste
Biology
1
Astrobiology: Space Missions
Scientific paper
Two amino acids, L-leucine and "α-methyl-L-leucine; a cyclic dipeptide, L-leucine-diketopiperazine, and an activated tripeptide L-trileucine thioethylester, were exposed for three months to space conditions onboard the MIR station during the Perseus-Exobiology mission in 1999. These samples were exposed in order to study the exogeneous hypothesis for the origin of some of the important biological building blocks of life. The four compounds were exposed both free and associated with basalt, clay and meteorite powder to simulate the effects of potential meteorite protection. Post-flight analyses did not reveal any racemization or polymerisation of the exposed compounds. Approximately half of the amino acids were photolyzed with decarboxylation apparently the primary cause. Peptides were less sensitive to photolysis which mainly occurred by decarbonylation, but were partly lost by natural degradation or sublimation. The best mineral protection for the samples was ensured by the meteorite powder, which exhibits the highest absorption in VUV, whereas clay, almost transparent in VUV was the least efficient. By varying the thickness of the meteorite layer, it was determined that a 5 μm film was necessary to ensure efficient protection against UV radiation.
Barbier Bernard
Belsky Andrei
Bertrand-Urbaniak Marylène
Boillot François
Brack André
No associations
LandOfFree
The Perseus-Exobiology experiment onboard MIR does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with The Perseus-Exobiology experiment onboard MIR, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and The Perseus-Exobiology experiment onboard MIR will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-739045