Publication details
Chiralita známá i neznámá (první část)
| Title in English | Chirality Known and Unknown (Part One) |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2023 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Biologie-Chemie-Zeměpis |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | https://bichez.pedf.cuni.cz/archiv/article/207 |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.14712/25337556.2023.4.3 |
| Keywords | Chirality, Homochirality of life, Optical activity, History of stereochemistry |
| Description | The existence of an object non-superimposable on its mirror image constitutes the phenomenon of chirality. This phenomenon is often treated as a curiosity without broader practical consequences. This paper aims to show the significant implications of chirality for chemistry and biology. Chirality is inherent to all living organisms and is essential for their function. For instance, biomolecules are composed of chiral building blocks (amino acids, monosaccharides), which are chiral and occur predominantly with one sense of handedness (homochirality of life). The origin of the homochirality of life is thus an essential issue in proposed life development mechanisms. The paper also shows why asymmetry with respect to mirror reflection is a general attribute of our world. Historical milestones in scientific reflection of chirality are also presented, starting with french crystallographers of the late 18th century, through a work of Pasteur, fundaments of organic stereochemistry postulated by van't Hoff and Le Bel, elucidation of a structure of monosaccharides by Fischer, and ending with a discovery of the absolute configuration of a molecule and confirmation of parity violation of weak interaction. |