Component Of Volcanic Gas May Have Played A Significant Role In The Origins Of Life On Earth

From ScienceDaily.com:

"Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies are reporting a possible answer to a longstanding question in research on the origins of life on Earth--how did the first amino acids form the first peptides?...

In their report, the scientists demonstrate that the gas [carbonyl sulfide, present in volcanic gasses] can bring about a vigorous chemical reaction that forms peptides under mild aqueous conditions. Within a few minutes of introducing the gas to a reaction vessel containing amino acids, they observed high yields of di-, tri-, and tetra-peptides. They carried out the reaction in the presence of air, without air, and with and without other ingredients like metal ions, and they found peptides formed readily under all these conditions."