Gas-phase identification of (Z)-1,2-ethenediol, a key prebiotic intermediate in the formose reaction

Abstract

1,2-Ethenediol represents a key intermediate species in the process of sugar formation. Here, its rotational spectrum has been recorded and analyzed in order to enable its search in the interstellar medium.

Precursors of the RNA-world in space: Detection of ($Z$)-1,2-ethenediol in the interstellar medium, a key intermediate in sugar formation

“…To search for transitions of (CHOH) 2 in our spectral survey of the G+0.693 molecular cloud, we have implemented the rotational spectroscopy information from the recent laboratory work by Melosso et al (2022) into the SLIM (Spectral Line Identification and Modeling) tool within MADCUBA (version 09/11/2021), which generates synthetic spectra under the assumption of Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium (LTE) conditions.…”

“…However, 1,2-ethenediol has never been searched for in the ISM, since its rotational spectrum was unknown until recently. In this Letter we use the new laboratory spectroscopic measurements performed by Melosso et al (2022) to provide the first detection of (CHOH) 2 in the ISM towards the G+0.693−0.027 molecular cloud (G+0.693, hereafter) located in the Sgr B2 complex within the Galactic Center.…”

Connections between the accuracy of rotational constants and equilibrium molecular structures

“…Therefore, benchmarking the results they deliver with experiment is a crucial step in assessing their performance. On the other hand, advancements in gasphase spectroscopic techniques have extended their use to larger and flexible systems (such as clusters [30][31][32] , amino acids 33,34 , DNA-scaffold ribosugars 35 ) as well as to unstable species (obtained by flash vacuum pyrolysis 36,37 or discharge 38 ). Increasingly, complicated spectra have to be analyzed which strongly require theory for their interpretation 12,13,34,36,[39][40][41] .…”

“…On the other hand, advancements in gasphase spectroscopic techniques have extended their use to larger and flexible systems (such as clusters [30][31][32] , amino acids 33,34 , DNA-scaffold ribosugars 35 ) as well as to unstable species (obtained by flash vacuum pyrolysis 36,37 or discharge 38 ). Increasingly, complicated spectra have to be analyzed which strongly require theory for their interpretation 12,13,34,36,[39][40][41] . For isolated systems, rotational spectroscopy can serve to demonstrate the accuracy that can be reached by quantum chemistry and to show how much we need to push theory to obtain predictions useful to experiment.…”

“…Increasingly, complicated spectra have to be analyzed which strongly require theory for their interpretation. 12,13,34,36,[39][40][41] For isolated systems, rotational spectroscopy can serve to demonstrate the accuracy that can be reached by quantum chemistry and to show how much we need to push theory to obtain predictions useful to experiment. In this spectroscopic technique, rotational constants are the leading terms and strongly depend on the molecular structure.…”