Abstract

FRANCO-RODRIGUEZ, Fernanda C. et al. Chirality in natural sciences: an approach at different scales. La Granja [online]. 2023, vol.37, n.1, pp.8-22. ISSN 1390-8596.  https://doi.org/10.17163/lgr.n37.2023.01.

The terms right and left are applicable beyond everyday life and living beings. The fingers on the right hand are arranged in relation to the center of the hand, which is not identical or superimposable to that of the left hand. Both variants are symmetrical versions, but not identical. The spatial arrangement can be observed not only in objects, but also in trajectories. For example, in the bats’ flight trajectories. In this article some examples of the chirality condition at different organization levels are defined and some of the recent advances on the subject are mentioned. Understanding the origin of chiral asymmetry found in particles, molecules, and macromolecules, allows us to infer current questions such as chemical evolution, the origin of life, and aspects related to evolution and the development of living beings, among others.

Keywords : Chirality; symmetry; enantiomers; optical activity; biomolecules.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )