Proyecto de Investigación: the Onset of Prebiotic chEmistry iN Space
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101125858
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Expanding the C3H6O2 isomeric interstellar inventory: Discovery of lactaldehyde and methoxyacetaldehyde in G+0.693-0.027
(EDP Sciences, 2026-02-23) Sanz-Novo, Miguel; Rivilla, Victor M.; Jimenez-Serra, Izaskun; Colzi, Laura; Zeng, Shaoshan; Megías, Andrés; San Andrés, David; López-Gallifa, Álvaro; Martínez-Henares, Antonio; Fried, Zachary; McGuire, Brett; Martin Ruiz, Sergio; Requena Torres, Miguel Angel; Tercero, Belén; de Vicente, Pablo; Kolesniková, Lucie; Alonso, Elena Rita; Cocinero, E. J.; Guillemin, Jean-Claude; Kleiner, I.; Agencia Estatal de Investigación (España); Comunidad de Madrid; Centre National D'Etudes Spatiales (CNES); Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC); Gobierno Vasco; Instituto Geográfico Español (IGN); European Commission (EC); Centro de Astrobiología del Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial y CSIC, MDM-2017-0737
Aims. The tentative detection of 3-hydroxypropanal (HO(CH2)2C(O)H) toward the Galactic center molecular cloud G+0.693-0.027 prompts a systematic survey in this source aimed at detecting all C3H6O2 isomers with available spectroscopy.
Methods. We used an ultra-deep broadband spectral survey of G+0.693-0.027, carried out with the Yebes 40 m and IRAM 30 m telescopes, to conduct the astronomical search.
Results. We report the first interstellar detection of lactaldehyde (CH3CH(OH)C(O)H) and methoxyacetaldehyde (CH3OCH2C(O)H), together with the second detections (i.e., confirmation) of methyl acetate (CH3C(O)OCH3) and hydroxyacetone (CH3C(O)CH2OH), and new detections in this source of both anti - and g auche - conformers of ethyl formate (CH3CH2OC(O)H; the latter being tentative). For these species, we derived a fractional abundance relative to H2 of ~(0.81, 0.24, 16, 1.6, 1.3, 1.4) × 10−10, respectively. In contrast, neither propionic acid, CH3CH2C(O)OH, nor glycidol, c-CH2OCHCH2OH (i.e., the most and the least stable species within the C3H6O2 family, respectively) were detected, and we provide upper limits on their fractional abundances of ≤1.5 × 10−10 and ≤3.7 × 10−11. Interestingly, all C3H6O2 isomers can be synthesized through radical-radical reactions on the surface of dust grains, ultimately tracing back to CO as the parent molecule. We suggest that formation of the detected isomers is mainly driven by successive hydrogenation of CO, producing CH3OH and CH3CH2OH as the primary parent species. Conversely, propionic acid is thought to originate from the oxygenation of CO via the HOCO intermediate, which help us rationalize its non-detection. Overall, our findings notably expand the known chemical inventory of the interstellar medium and provide direct observational evidence that increasingly complex chemistry involving O-bearing species occurs in space.
Laboratory rotational spectroscopy and interstellar search for the protein precursor 4-oxobutanenitrile (HCOCH2CH2CN)
(Oxford University Press, 2026-02-01) Rivilla, Victor M.; Alonso, Elena Rita; Song, W.; Insausti Beiro, Aran; Maris, Assimo; Basterretxea, Francisco J.; Melandri, Sonia; Jimenez-Serra, Izaskun; Cocinero, Emilio J.; Università di Bologna; Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI); Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI); Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC); European Commission (EC); Gobierno Vasco
Understanding the presence and distribution of pre-biotic precursorsin the interstellar medium (ISM)is key to tracing the chemical origins of life. Among them, 4-oxobutanenitrile (HCOCH2CH2CN) has been identified in laboratory simulations as a plausible intermediate in the formation of glutamic acid, a proteinogenic amino acid. Here, we report its gas-phase rotational spectrum, measured using two complementary techniques: chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave (CP-FTMW) spectroscopy (2– 18 GHz) and free-jet millimetre-wave (FJ−AMMW) absorption spectroscopy (59.6–80 GHz). Quantum chemical calculations revealed nine low-energy conformers, of which the TC conformer was assigned based on the measured spectra. The resulting spectroscopic parameters were used to search for the molecule in the ultradeep spectral survey of the G+0.693-0.027 molecular cloud, located in the Galactic Center. No signal attributable to 4−oxobutanenitrile was detected. A stringent upper limit to its column density was derived (N < 4 ×1012 cm−2), corresponding to a molecular abundance of <2.9 ×10−11 relative to H2. This upper limit lies well below the observed abundances of simpler structurally related species containing −HCO and −CN groups, underscoring the challenge of detecting increasingly complex pre-biotic molecules in the ISM and the need for future, more sensitive astronomical facilities.
