title: Prebiotic chemistry of phosphonic acids: products derived from phosphonoacetaldehyde in the presence of formaldehyde.
abstract: Phosphonoacetaldehyde (PAL), a phosphonic acid analogue of glycolaldehyde phosphate, reacts in the presence of formaldehyde under mildly basic conditions to produce several new products. The reaction proceeds in two stages: a fast aldol condensation of formaldehyde with PAL, and a slower reaction to produce products containing two phosphonic acid groups. We report on the derivatization, isolation by means of HPLC and characterization of these compounds. One of the products is of potential interest as a building block for a prebiotic informational polymer.
authors.affiliation: Evolutionary Biology Research Group, Faculty of Science, University of Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: De Graaf
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Visscher
authors.forename: A W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Schwartz
mesh_terms: D000079:Acetaldehyde / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005557:Formaldehyde / Q000737:chemistry*; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D008956:Models, Chemical; D063065:Organophosphonates / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D063065:Organophosphonates; C003126:phosphonoacetaldehyde; D005557:Formaldehyde; D000079:Acetaldehyde