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	<title>Comments on: Dust Collected From Comet Contains a Key Ingredient of Life</title>
	<atom:link href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/</link>
	<description>80beats is DISCOVER&#039;s news aggregator, weaving together the choicest tidbits from the best articles covering the day\&#039;s most compelling topics.</description>
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		<title>By: Theron Gilliland, Jr.</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-52827</link>
		<dc:creator>Theron Gilliland, Jr.</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:15:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-52827</guid>
		<description>Glycine is the only proteinogenic amino acid that is achiral--it doesn&#039;t not possess chirality. This is because its alpha-carbon has two hydrogens (the same functional group) attached to it, and therefore it can be superimposed on its mirror image.

Also, your understanding of chirality is confused. The D-form and L-form notation of amino acids does not refer to the direction in which they rotate a plane of polarized light, but to their structural similarity to the optically active enantiomer of glyceraldehyde which does. For example, an amino acid may technically rotate a plane of polarized light to the right [and be dextrorotary, more properly notated (+)] BUT still be the L-form if it is structurally similar to levorotary (-) glyceraldehyde that rotates a plane of polarized light counter-clockwise, to the left.

I would also like to point out that the existence of naturally-occurring racemic mixes (50:50) of amino acids would not prove anything. To the best of my knowledge, it is believed that once L-amino acids began to be used biologically, everything else after that could only work with that, and so it did.  It could have just as easily been the other way around.  The fact that the overwhelming disparity exists rather than different phyla or whatever using their own form is actually very good evidence for common descent (i.e., evolution). This statement

     &quot;If even very small amounts of amino acid molecules of the dextrorotary 
     type are present, proteins of a different 3-D structure are formed; these 
     proteins are not capable of supporting life, and often can be fatal to life.&quot;

is simply not true.  The incorrect enantiomer would not be incorporated into a protein at all--most likely it would harnlessly excreted--or it may in fact be switched to the &quot;correct&quot; form by a racemase enzyme.

And finally, D-forms of amino acids are not necessarily not physiologically active.  D-amino acids are incorporated into peptidoglycan in some bacterial cell walls. A more relevant example: D-serine formed by serine racemase activates NDMA receptors in the brain and is being investigated as an important  neurotransmitter.</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Glycine is the only proteinogenic amino acid that is achiral&#8211;it doesn&#8217;t not possess chirality. This is because its alpha-carbon has two hydrogens (the same functional group) attached to it, and therefore it can be superimposed on its mirror image.</p>
<p>Also, your understanding of chirality is confused. The D-form and L-form notation of amino acids does not refer to the direction in which they rotate a plane of polarized light, but to their structural similarity to the optically active enantiomer of glyceraldehyde which does. For example, an amino acid may technically rotate a plane of polarized light to the right [and be dextrorotary, more properly notated (+)] BUT still be the L-form if it is structurally similar to levorotary (-) glyceraldehyde that rotates a plane of polarized light counter-clockwise, to the left.</p>
<p>I would also like to point out that the existence of naturally-occurring racemic mixes (50:50) of amino acids would not prove anything. To the best of my knowledge, it is believed that once L-amino acids began to be used biologically, everything else after that could only work with that, and so it did.  It could have just as easily been the other way around.  The fact that the overwhelming disparity exists rather than different phyla or whatever using their own form is actually very good evidence for common descent (i.e., evolution). This statement</p>
<p>     &#8220;If even very small amounts of amino acid molecules of the dextrorotary<br />
     type are present, proteins of a different 3-D structure are formed; these<br />
     proteins are not capable of supporting life, and often can be fatal to life.&#8221;</p>
<p>is simply not true.  The incorrect enantiomer would not be incorporated into a protein at all&#8211;most likely it would harnlessly excreted&#8211;or it may in fact be switched to the &#8220;correct&#8221; form by a racemase enzyme.</p>
<p>And finally, D-forms of amino acids are not necessarily not physiologically active.  D-amino acids are incorporated into peptidoglycan in some bacterial cell walls. A more relevant example: D-serine formed by serine racemase activates NDMA receptors in the brain and is being investigated as an important  neurotransmitter.</p>
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		<title>By: Rev Nicholas Dalinkiewicz</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43219</link>
		<dc:creator>Rev Nicholas Dalinkiewicz</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 23:52:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43219</guid>
		<description>For biogenesis to occur all amino acids of living protoplasm must have laevorotary chirality – this is an absolute necessity. Dextrorotary amino acids do not fit into the metabolism of living organisms. If even very small amounts of amino acid molecules of the dextrorotary type are present, proteins of a different 3-D structure are formed; these proteins are not capable of supporting life, and often can be fatal to life.
 
What was the chirality ratio of the glycine amino acid molecules found in a sample returned by the space probe? Was it 100% laevorotary (as required by living organisms), or a 50:50 mix, as occurs with lab experiments on Earth?</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>For biogenesis to occur all amino acids of living protoplasm must have laevorotary chirality – this is an absolute necessity. Dextrorotary amino acids do not fit into the metabolism of living organisms. If even very small amounts of amino acid molecules of the dextrorotary type are present, proteins of a different 3-D structure are formed; these proteins are not capable of supporting life, and often can be fatal to life.</p>
<p>What was the chirality ratio of the glycine amino acid molecules found in a sample returned by the space probe? Was it 100% laevorotary (as required by living organisms), or a 50:50 mix, as occurs with lab experiments on Earth?</p>
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		<title>By: Carlos   Avila</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43132</link>
		<dc:creator>Carlos   Avila</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:27:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43132</guid>
		<description>You are and will be what ever you have in your mind, my fellow internet user......</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>You are and will be what ever you have in your mind, my fellow internet user&#8230;&#8230;</p>
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		<title>By: Carlos   Avila</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43129</link>
		<dc:creator>Carlos   Avila</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:25:07 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43129</guid>
		<description>God is the only Creator. He created everything, it was not the devil who put the threes in the eden garden, it was God. But the creator is not less than its creatiopn, so HE can&#039;t sin. I don&#039;t believe in the devil, it is each one of us. The sin and all those who like to commit sin, just because God put it there for you and I to decide.
Good luck understanding this, open minded friend........</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>God is the only Creator. He created everything, it was not the devil who put the threes in the eden garden, it was God. But the creator is not less than its creatiopn, so HE can&#8217;t sin. I don&#8217;t believe in the devil, it is each one of us. The sin and all those who like to commit sin, just because God put it there for you and I to decide.<br />
Good luck understanding this, open minded friend&#8230;&#8230;..</p>
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		<title>By: Carlos Avila</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43120</link>
		<dc:creator>Carlos Avila</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:16:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43120</guid>
		<description>Hey, have respect for different opinions, don&#039;t call other persons like that because you show who you&#039;re. Be open minded and accept free speech even you&#039;re disagreed. Don&#039;t be the person you call me!!!!!........</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Hey, have respect for different opinions, don&#8217;t call other persons like that because you show who you&#8217;re. Be open minded and accept free speech even you&#8217;re disagreed. Don&#8217;t be the person you call me!!!!!&#8230;&#8230;..</p>
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		<title>By: Dave in Calif</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43106</link>
		<dc:creator>Dave in Calif</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 19:17:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43106</guid>
		<description>Yep...juuuust to dang stupid.</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Yep&#8230;juuuust to dang stupid.</p>
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		<title>By: Dave in Calif</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43104</link>
		<dc:creator>Dave in Calif</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 19:16:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43104</guid>
		<description>Yep, that devil is sure a pesky fellow...more than likely it was g.o.d. who made it look like the entire universe is only 10,000 years old, probably much younger, after all he can do anything, and we are just too stupid to know better...</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Yep, that devil is sure a pesky fellow&#8230;more than likely it was g.o.d. who made it look like the entire universe is only 10,000 years old, probably much younger, after all he can do anything, and we are just too stupid to know better&#8230;</p>
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		<title>By: Joshua</title>
		<link>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/comment-page-1/#comment-43064</link>
		<dc:creator>Joshua</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2009 15:41:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/08/18/dust-collected-from-comet-contains-a-key-ingredient-of-life/#comment-43064</guid>
		<description>Does that mean that the devil could still have planted all of those dinosaur bones to deceive us?</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Does that mean that the devil could still have planted all of those dinosaur bones to deceive us?</p>
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