One of the most wildly debated and difficult to answer questions in any field of science is the origin of life. From where did we come? One of the most widely accepted hypotheses of our origin points to hydrothermal vents, fissures deep within the ocean that spew water heated by geothermal activity. The water these vents exude is filled with minerals and as a result dense communities of deep sea life congregate around them, as seen in the video below uploaded by Youtube user MrCoxyWoxy.
What makes some researchers believe this is where it all began? The alkaline hydrothermal vents interact with the carbon dioxide-rich seawater in a bunch of redox reactions, in which electron acceptors, in this case the carbon dioxide, receive electrons from electron donors such as molecular hydrogen. These reactions are exothermic and release a lot of energy, meaning that hydrothermal vents are a source of sustained chemical energy from beneath the sea floor. Such an environment, ideal for the redox reactions, is a great candidate for the origin of life. It’s even been demonstrated that deep sea vents can create the same type of proton-motive force seen in living organisms.
Redox reactions are how life harnesses chemical energy. When we digest food, our cells carry out redox reactions in order to extract the nutrients in it. Since hydrothermal vents are full of the building blocks required for redox reactions involving hydrocarbons like the ones we utilize for food today, it seems possible that the chemical processes our bodies use originated in hydrothermal vents.
By Erik Johnson
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