The origin of chirality in nature

Abstract Pasteur's discovery of the connection between optical activity and molecular chirality led him to suppose that the forces of nature are not mirror-symmetric. His conjecture is supported by the recent discovery that the weak interaction between fundamental particles does not conserve mirror-image equivalence, violating parity. As a consequence of the weak left-handedness of the electron, the l-amino acids and the l-peptides, predominant in the living world, are stabilized relative to their d-enantiomers. Stephen Mason presents this comprehensive review on the origin and current status of chirality as understood from a molecular optical activity viewpoint.