Stereoselective differentiation in the Salt-induced Peptide Formation reaction and its relevance for the origin of life

All living organisms on earth are almost totally made up of biomolecules of only one chiral form. For example, proteins are built almost exclusively of l-amino acids, and sugars are composed of d-saccharides, a fact that is usually referred to as biohomochirality. Its origin is the center of numerous investigations and theories but is not really elucidated yet. The results of experimental investigations of peptide formation in a prebiotically relevant scenario, as described in this paper, give indications on a possible pathway for the synthesis of homochiral l-peptides in the course of the Salt-induced Peptide Formation (SIPF) reaction.