Kanie Lab

Tokai University

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Why do not polyhydroxylated amino acids exist on the earth?

When various types of molecules such as water, aldehydes, ammonia, and hydrogen cyanide are available, amino acids can be formed under certain conditions. The polyhydroxylated aldehydes, carbohydrates, are formed from formaldehyde as well when conditions are fixed. If these species existed in a same period on the ancient earth, a series of polyhydroxylated amino acids could have been formed. If the type of amino acids were available, life could have relied on the array of amino acids. In turn, we might have evolved to use them. However, there are no known such molecules, as far as I know. Carbohydrates consisting of greater number of carbon atoms, say more than four carbons, tend to form intramolecular acetals, hemiacetals. This may explain some. But then why did not shorter ones react with ammonia and so on? Does any one have any answer or idea about this?


What is the origin of molecules used in forming life?

Imagination explodes when thinking back and forth in time. The evolution of our beings being together with other beings sharing a same slice of time that is controlled by the evolution of the universe itself intrigues us who might also share the time with yet-to-see other intelligent beings. It was considered that constituting fundamental molecules of life including nucleotides, amino acids, and carbohydrates were "synthesized" on the earth in early stage. However, no one knows why a series of polyhydroxylated amino acids was not formed. (See above) Would new life form using atoms and elemental molecules forming our bodies, which is spread to the space, as time goes and when our solar system or the galaxy dies? What then would it be? Who knows the "reason" of maintaining and delivering a "molecular logics" as a genetic information among species along timeline. Although it is nonsense trying to find any reason of the phenomenon, we also exist based on the evidence and further developed to have nerve system and the brain that is used for creating and delivering "artificial logics" such as languages. The language has been enforced by the invention of methods of storage (writing), multiplication (printing), and acceleration (computation) and is always with us. Two of these different logics conceptually resemble in the essence of the delivering information. Both logics do not seem to care about the form or the shape. However, the rate and the volume of artificial logics are continuing to increase. It is considered that such artificial logics developed by one of the species, human, are governed by higher concept of life that is the delivering information by means of molecular logics. It might be natural to conclude that human is "required" to deliver the artificial logics not just to some generations but also to some other intelligent species emerging after human race extinct. Would it be possible for us to deliver the logic itself to whom we know nothing about and to whom does not exist yet? What if we find somewhere some foreign logic that has been "sent" by others who lived billions of years ago?  My thoughts explode along the timeline and the space lately.

 

Members


Yoshimi Kanie

Dr. Agr

Visiting researcher

Tokai University

Analytical Chemistry and Cell Biology


Hiroshi Ohshika

M2

Chemistry


Yuri Asami

M1

Chemistry


Wakana Ohshima

B4

Chemistry


Yoshihiro Takeo

B4

Chemistry


Jyunya Sato

B4

Chemistry


Masanari Koso

B4

Cell Biology


Hibiki Jinushi

B4

Chemistry

Makoto Fujiwara

B3

Chemical Engineering







Join us!

 

What’s on my mind

Osamu Kanie

Professor

Dr. Pharm

Interested in creating molecular probes that can be used to visualize cellular events, also, in application of such in investigating viral or microbial infection process.

Lately became interested in geometrically controlled molecules.

 

MS and nanoLC

Students

Fumehood

A reaction

Nano-spray tip stuffed with silica particles for electroionization

It may sound a bit strange but I am pretty serious about the following stuffs.


  1. 1.Developing a single mechanism that regulates space craft's attitude

  2. 2.Developing a electricity generator based on earth's free oscillation

  3. 3.Developing artificial leg made of bamboo

  4. 4.What the evolution is

  5. 5.What humans could be after 50 million years

  6. 6.Skeltal features of dinosaur in terms of gravitational balance

  7. 7.Energy balance between cells in a living being

  8. 8.Evolution and earth's environment

  9. 9.Origin of chirality of molecules

  10. 10.Developing silica-based water proof and selective binder for water soluble molecules