As a possible formation mechanism of glycine in astrophysical environments, a reaction path via aminoacetonitrile and hydantoin (2,4-imidazolidinedione), which have been detected in an interstellar cloud and meteorites, respectively, were analyzed using the density functional theory. The formation of hydantoin from aminoacetonitrile via the Bucherer-Bergs reaction and the hydrolysis of hydantoin were investigated. The results showed that the catalytic water molecules significantly lower the reaction barriers for the formation of hydantoin. Although the highest barrier is still too high that the pathway is inactive in an interstellar medium, this reaction would proceed during the heating of the meteorite parent body. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.