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Cheptsov VS, Vorobyova EA, Osipov GA, Manucharova NA, Polyanskaya LM, Gorlenko MV, Pavlov AK, Rosanova MS, Lomasov VN. Microbial activity in Martian analog soils after ionizing radiation: implications for the preservation of subsurface life on Mars. AIMS Microbiol 2018; 4:541-562. [PMID: 31294232 PMCID: PMC6604939 DOI: 10.3934/microbiol.2018.3.541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2018] [Accepted: 07/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
At present, the surface of Mars is affected by a set of factors that can prevent the survival of Earth-like life. However, the modern concept of the evolution of the planet assumes the existence more favorable for life climate in the past. If in the past on Mars had formed a biosphere, similar to the one that originated in the early Earth, it is supposed that it is preserved till now in anabiotic state in the bowels of the planet, like microbial communities inhabiting the ancient permafrost of Arctic and Antarctic. In the conditions of modern Martian regolith, this relic life seems to be deprived of the possibility of damage reparation (or these processes occur on a geological time scale), and ionizing radiation should be considered the main factor inhibiting such anabiotic life. In the present study, we studied soil samples, selected in two different extreme habitats of the Earth: ancient permafrost from the Dry Valleys of Antarctica and Xerosol soil from the mountain desert in Morocco, gamma-irradiated with 40 kGy dose at low pressure (1 Torr) and low temperature (-50 °C). Microbial communities inhabiting these samples showed in situ high resistance to the applied effects, retained high number of viable cells, metabolic activity, and high biodiversity. Based on the results, it is assumed that the putative biosphere could be preserved in the dormant state for at least 500 thousand years and 8 million years in the surface layer of Mars regolith and at 5 m depth, respectively, at the current level of ionizing radiation intensity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vladimir S Cheptsov
- Soil Science Faculty, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.,Space Research Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Elena A Vorobyova
- Soil Science Faculty, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.,Space Research Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - George A Osipov
- International Analytical Center, Interlab, N.D.Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry, Moscow, Russia
| | | | | | | | - Anatoli K Pavlov
- Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Marina S Rosanova
- Soil Science Faculty, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Vladimir N Lomasov
- Peter the Great St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University, St. Petersburg, Russia
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Cheptsov VS, Vorobyova EA, Manucharova NA, Gorlenko MV, Pavlov AK, Vdovina MA, Lomasov VN, Bulat SA. 100 kGy gamma-affected microbial communities within the ancient Arctic permafrost under simulated Martian conditions. Extremophiles 2017; 21:1057-1067. [DOI: 10.1007/s00792-017-0966-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2017] [Accepted: 09/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Leuko S, Rettberg P, Pontifex AL, Burns BP. On the response of halophilic archaea to space conditions. Life (Basel) 2014; 4:66-76. [PMID: 25370029 PMCID: PMC4187150 DOI: 10.3390/life4010066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2014] [Revised: 02/10/2014] [Accepted: 02/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Microorganisms are ubiquitous and can be found in almost every habitat and ecological niche on Earth. They thrive and survive in a broad spectrum of environments and adapt to rapidly changing external conditions. It is of great interest to investigate how microbes adapt to different extreme environments and with modern human space travel, we added a new extreme environment: outer space. Within the last 50 years, technology has provided tools for transporting microbial life beyond Earth's protective shield in order to study in situ responses to selected conditions of space. This review will focus on halophilic archaea, as, due to their ability to survive in extremes, they are often considered a model group of organisms to study responses to the harsh conditions associated with space. We discuss ground-based simulations, as well as space experiments, utilizing archaea, examining responses and/or resistance to the effects of microgravity and UV in particular. Several halophilic archaea (e.g., Halorubrum chaoviator) have been exposed to simulated and actual space conditions and their survival has been determined as well as the protective effects of halite shown. Finally, the intriguing potential of archaea to survive on other planets or embedded in a meteorite is postulated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Leuko
- Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, Institut für Luft- und Raumfahrtmedizin, Abteilung Strahlenbiologie, Arbeitsgruppe Astrobiologie, Linder Höhe, Köln 51147, Germany.
| | - Petra Rettberg
- Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, Institut für Luft- und Raumfahrtmedizin, Abteilung Strahlenbiologie, Arbeitsgruppe Astrobiologie, Linder Höhe, Köln 51147, Germany.
| | - Ashleigh L Pontifex
- School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia.
| | - Brendan P Burns
- School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia.
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Reigstad LJ, Jorgensen SL, Lauritzen SE, Schleper C, Urich T. Sulfur-oxidizing chemolithotrophic proteobacteria dominate the microbiota in high arctic thermal springs on Svalbard. ASTROBIOLOGY 2011; 11:665-678. [PMID: 21899440 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2010.0551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The thermal springs Trollosen and Fisosen, located on the High Arctic archipelago Svalbard, discharge saline groundwaters rich in hydrogen sulfide and ammonium through a thick layer of permafrost. Large amounts of biomass that consist of filamentous microorganisms containing sulfur granules, as analyzed with energy dispersive X-ray analysis, were found in the outflow. Prokaryotic 16S rRNA gene libraries and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analyses reported bacteria of the γ- and ɛ-proteobacterial classes as the dominant organisms in the filaments and the planktonic fractions, closely related to known chemolithoautotrophic sulfur oxidizers (Thiotrix and Sulfurovum). Archaea comprised ∼1% of the microbial community, with the majority of sequences affiliated with the Thaumarchaeota. Archaeal and bacterial genes coding for a subunit of the enzyme ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) were detected, as well as 16S rRNA genes of Nitrospira, all of which is indicative of potential complete nitrification in both springs. 16S rRNA sequences related to methanogens and methanotrophs were detected as well. This study provides evidence that the microbial communities in Trollosen and Fisosen are sustained by chemolithotrophy, mainly through the oxidation of reduced sulfur compounds, and that ammonium and methane might be minor, additional sources of energy and carbon.
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Northup DE, Melim LA, Spilde MN, Hathaway JJM, Garcia MG, Moya M, Stone FD, Boston PJ, Dapkevicius MLNE, Riquelme C. Lava cave microbial communities within mats and secondary mineral deposits: implications for life detection on other planets. ASTROBIOLOGY 2011; 11:601-18. [PMID: 21879833 PMCID: PMC3176350 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2010.0562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2010] [Accepted: 04/03/2011] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Lava caves contain a wealth of yellow, white, pink, tan, and gold-colored microbial mats; but in addition to these clearly biological mats, there are many secondary mineral deposits that are nonbiological in appearance. Secondary mineral deposits examined include an amorphous copper-silicate deposit (Hawai'i) that is blue-green in color and contains reticulated and fuzzy filament morphologies. In the Azores, lava tubes contain iron-oxide formations, a soft ooze-like coating, and pink hexagons on basaltic glass, while gold-colored deposits are found in lava caves in New Mexico and Hawai'i. A combination of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and molecular techniques was used to analyze these communities. Molecular analyses of the microbial mats and secondary mineral deposits revealed a community that contains 14 phyla of bacteria across three locations: the Azores, New Mexico, and Hawai'i. Similarities exist between bacterial phyla found in microbial mats and secondary minerals, but marked differences also occur, such as the lack of Actinobacteria in two-thirds of the secondary mineral deposits. The discovery that such deposits contain abundant life can help guide our detection of life on extraterrestrial bodies.
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Affiliation(s)
- D E Northup
- Biology Department, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA.
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Chroococcidiopsis from Desert to Mars. CELLULAR ORIGIN, LIFE IN EXTREME HABITATS AND ASTROBIOLOGY 2007. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4020-6112-7_30] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
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