What hypothesis did Miller test in his classic experiment?

Short Answer

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Miller tested the Oparin-Haldane hypothesis in his classic experiment. He showed that certain conditions stimulated on prehistoric Earth could have synthesized organic molecules from inorganic molecules through chemical reactions. This reaction has led to the formation of living organisms.

Stanley Miller experimented on primordial soup and showed that brown broth rich in amino acids is the main component for building blocks of life in organisms.

Step by step solution

01

Importance of Miller experiment

Miller-Urey conducted an experiment in 1952 and tested the origin of life on prebiotic Earth.It wasdone to test the idea that organic molecules were produced on prehistoric Earth through natural chemical reactions.

These organic molecules have led to life origination from inorganic compounds that reacted with prehistoric stimulation conditions.

02

Organic molecules

The organic molecules such as amino acids were produced in 1952 through a series of chemical reactions of hydrogen, methane, ammonia, and water to test the hypothesis.This duplicated the primitive atmosphere in the apparatus.

These were three reactants in the Miller-Urey experiment. The Miller-Urey experiments synthesized an enzyme named RNA nucleobases in a reducing atmosphere in the presence of carbon dioxide with ammonia.

03

Oparin and Haldane Hypothesis

Oparin and Haldane proposed the heterotrophic origin of life in the early 1920s. They suggested that energy from lightning or ultraviolet radiation has penetrated the environment and resulted in the synthesis of organic compounds.

Miller tested Oparin and Haldane’s hypothesis in his classic experiment by producing laboratory conditions to form several amino acids. These amino acids form polypeptides and synthesize proteins.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

The first appearance of free oxygen in the atmosphere likely triggered a massive wave of extinctions among the prokaryotes of the time. Why?

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