Fig. 1.

Natural complex organic materials divide into either functional biomolecules which eventually derive from a genetic code or complex biogeochemical nonrepetitive materials which are formed according to the general constraints of thermodynamics and kinetics from geochemical or ultimately biogenic molecules. While biomaterials are amenable to successful separation into unambiguously defined molecular fractions, complex nonrepetitive materials cannot be purified in the conventional meaning of purity due to their extreme intricacy; in fact, the molecular signatures of these supermixtures often approach the limitations imposed by the laws of chemical binding. Improvements in the resolution and sensitivity of analytical techniques combined with the use of minimal (non)invasive sampling techniques have enabled environmental and living systems to be observed to a degree of molecular resolution that was considered unthinkable only a few years ago. A molecular-level understanding of biogeochemical and life processes implies a key role for de novo structural analysis, which depends on the combined use of separation technology hyphenated to organic structural spectroscopy and integrated mathematical data analysis. Analyses of supermixtures depend even more on the mathematical analysis of correlated data obtained from complementary molecular-level precision analytical methods. The formation of NOM on the Earth preceded the evolution of life; the binding of NOM-derived prebiotic molecules to borate contributed to the synthesis of ribose, a crucial precursor of nucleotides, in good yield [5]. Later on in the Earth’s history, coevolution occurred between prebiotic/abiotic molecules, NOM and primitive and higher forms of life. The near-continuum of binding sites available to ions and organic molecules acts to buffer against environmental and chemical extremes in the geo- and biosphere, which could damage life because of their potent reactivity. This key supportive role of (for example) natural organic matter (NOM) in life processes is sustained by strong interactions between biological and geochemical cycles (Fig. 2). Hence, plant and animal residues are key ingredients of NOM synthesis, while NOM itself, which defines the bioavailability of crucial organic and inorganic nutrients, is indispensable for the sustenance of the microbial life at the bottom of the food chain