Preferential polymerization and adsorption of L-optical isomers of amino acids relative to D-optical isomers on kaolinite templates.

Experiments on the polymerization of the L- and D-optical isomers of aspartic acid and serine using kaolinite as a catalyst showed that the L-optical isomers were polymerized at a much higher rate than the D-optical isomers; racemic (DL-) mixtures were polymerized at an intermediate rate. The peptides formed from the L-monomers were preferentially adsorbed by the clay. In the absence of kaolinite, no significant or consistent difference in the behavior of the L- and D-optical isomers was observed. In experiments on the adsorption of L- and D-phenylalanine by kaolinite, the L-optical isomer was preferentially adsorbed.