Abiotic synthesis of nucleobases and amino acids is of critical importance as it sheds light on potential prebiotic chemical reactions. During thermal decomposition of formamide in vacuum conditions, purine, cytosine, adenine, hypoxanthine, uracil, pterin, urea, urocanic acid, glycine, alanine and norvaline were detected. The compounds were obtained without catalyst by heating at 100–180 °C or microwave heating of formamide. Reaction network of self-catalyzed chemical reactions is suggested, showing how from only one parent molecule, nucleobases, urea and the amino acid glycine can be produced. The reaction pathways are theoretically determined using SCS-MP2 calculations. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma

Prebiotic formation of purine nucleobases and pterins is closely linked and most likely purines and pterins come into being together.