Enantioselective amino acid interactions in solution

Abstract

Enantiomeric excesses (ee) of L-amino acids in meteorites are higher than 10%, especially for isovaline (Iva). This suggests the existence of some kind of triggering mechanism responsible for the amplification of the ee from an initial small value. Here, we investigate the dimeric molecular interactions of alanine (Ala) and Iva in solution as an initial nucleation step of crystals at an accurate first-principles level. We find that the dimeric interaction of Iva is more chirality-dependent than that of Ala, thus providing a clear molecular-level insight into the enantioselectivity of amino acids in solution.