A Protometabolic One-Pot Synthesis of Orotate and Pyruvate

Abstract

A reaction between two glycine derivatives generates both the nucleobase orotate, a precursor of biological pyrimidines, and pyruvate, a core metabolite in the citric acid cycle and amino acid biosynthesis. The reaction proceeds in water at mild pH and temperature to provide significant yields of the two widely divergent chemical motifs. Thio substitution within the orotate ring enables the generation of nucleoside derivatives. The identification of compatible reactants and conditions that provide multiple building blocks may increase the plausibility of complex biopolymers emerging early in a protometabolism