New Posts
  • Hi there guest! Welcome to PoliticalJack.com. Register for free to join our community?

Extremophiles

Zam-Zam

Senator
Life will out....


We humans think we’re pretty hot stuff—but that depends on what you’re measuring. When it comes to enduring harsh conditions, for example, there are creatures in this world that make us look like a bunch of cupcakes.

Meet the extremophiles, so-called because they can withstand environments so intensely hot, cold, salty, acidic, alkaline, pressurized, dry, radioactive, or barren they’d put us out like a match in a hurricane. So impressive are their superpowers that NASA made them trading cards, just like Superman.

Extremophiles not only do exceptional things, they’ve opened our minds about what life is and what kind of environments can support it, widening our view of the potential for life on other planets, scientists say.

“People who work with extremophiles have pretty much the same needs as people who are going to Mars except they can usually be there to operate the instruments themselves; they don’t have to have a robot do it. But it terms of technology and techniques it’s really the same,” said Jay Nadeau, associate professor of biomedical engineering at McGill University who studies extremophilic bacteria in the Canadian Arctic.

Her team was the first to describe the microbe genus Thiomicrospira, which has slight modifications to its cell structure that allow it thrive in its icy home.

Extremophiles could also help us with more earthly concerns, from pharmaceuticals to producing energy, but, Nadeau said, “A lot of this work is really done just for the interest in finding out what there is on planet Earth that we don’t know about … and there’s a lot of that.”


1614607075145.png



Complete text: 5 Extreme Life-Forms That Live on the Edge – National Geographic Society Newsroom
 

Addy

Rebuild With Biden!
That was interesting... my favorite was the water bear on your read/link.
_______________________________________
Cryptobiosis is a reversible state in which an animal's metabolism has come to a virtual standstill. Cryptobiosis is exhibited by various types of organism, including the tardigrade (shown here). A tardigrade, or "water bear," can go into a hibernation mode, known as the tun state, that is more akin to suspended animation whereby it can survive temperatures from -253°C to 151°C, as well as exposure to X-rays, and vacuum conditions. When tardigrades are placed in perfluorocarbon fluid (again while hibernating), at a pressure of 600 MPa – almost 6,000 times atmospheric pressure at sea level – they emerge from the experience unharmed. See also cryobiology.
1614614080562.png
 

Zam-Zam

Senator
That was interesting... my favorite was the water bear on your read/link.
_______________________________________
Cryptobiosis is a reversible state in which an animal's metabolism has come to a virtual standstill. Cryptobiosis is exhibited by various types of organism, including the tardigrade (shown here). A tardigrade, or "water bear," can go into a hibernation mode, known as the tun state, that is more akin to suspended animation whereby it can survive temperatures from -253°C to 151°C, as well as exposure to X-rays, and vacuum conditions. When tardigrades are placed in perfluorocarbon fluid (again while hibernating), at a pressure of 600 MPa – almost 6,000 times atmospheric pressure at sea level – they emerge from the experience unharmed. See also cryobiology.
View attachment 61655

Given the extreme conditions that these amazing creatures can survive in, I have to wonder if we are about to find something on or below the Martian surface.
 

Addy

Rebuild With Biden!
Given the extreme conditions that these amazing creatures can survive in, I have to wonder if we are about to find something on or below the Martian surface.
After reading how alike some areas of Chile are in comparison
to Mars -- it's a possibility. Some of these extremophiles have been found there.
It's amazing how much potential these extremophiles have for benefitting mankind... that's the best part. A really informative read on the link.
____________________________________________
How Extremophiles Might Help Us Save the World
snip ---

Research indicates that along with having the potential to help us develop countless new pharmaceuticals for treating diseases, some extremophiles might also possess the unique abilities needed to help us combat global warming and reduce pollution. In a less concrete way, they also might help us understand if life exists elsewhere in the universe, and if so, how “life” might be defined in different terms than what we currently accept. If these characteristics do not qualify these creatures as superheroes, then I do not know what does.

How Extremophiles Might Help Us Save the World | HuffPost
 

Zam-Zam

Senator
After reading how alike some areas of Chile are in comparison
to Mars -- it's a possibility. Some of these extremophiles have been found there.
It's amazing how much potential these extremophiles have for benefitting mankind... that's the best part. A really informative read on the link.
____________________________________________
How Extremophiles Might Help Us Save the World
snip ---

Research indicates that along with having the potential to help us develop countless new pharmaceuticals for treating diseases, some extremophiles might also possess the unique abilities needed to help us combat global warming and reduce pollution. In a less concrete way, they also might help us understand if life exists elsewhere in the universe, and if so, how “life” might be defined in different terms than what we currently accept. If these characteristics do not qualify these creatures as superheroes, then I do not know what does.

How Extremophiles Might Help Us Save the World | HuffPost

Interesting read, thanks for sharing.

I stumbled across the topic of extremophiles while listening to a podcast on blue holes during my morning run. It is remarkable what conditions these lifeforms can survive.

I imagine as we learn more about them we may discover all kinds of benefits for mankind.
 

Zam-Zam

Senator
Additional info:


Extremophiles are organisms that live and thrive in habitats where life is impossible for most living organisms. The suffix (-phile) comes from the Greek philos meaning to love. Extremophiles have a "love for" or attraction to extreme environments. Extremophiles have the ability to withstand conditions such as high radiation, high or low pressure, high or low pH, lack of light, extreme heat, extreme cold, and extreme dryness.

There are different classes of extremophiles based on the type of extreme environment in which they thrive. Examples include:

  • Acidophile: an organism that thrives in acidic environments with pH levels of 3 and below.
  • Alkaliphile: an organism that thrives in alkaline environments with pH levels of 9 and above.
  • Barophile: an organism that lives in high-pressure environments, such as deep-sea habitats.
  • Halophile: an organism that lives in habitats with extremely high salt concentrations.
  • Hyperthermophile: an organism that thrives in environments with extremely high temperatures; between 80–122 °C or 176-252 °F.
  • Psychrophile: an organism that survives in extreme cold conditions and low temperatures; between −20 °C to +10 °C or −4 °F to 50 °C.
  • Radiophile: an organism that thrives in conditions with high levels of radiation, including ultraviolet and nuclear radiation.
  • Xerophile: an organism that lives in extreme dry conditions.
Most extremophiles are microbes that come from the world of bacteria, Archaea, protists, and fungi. Larger organisms such as worms, frogs, insects, crustaceans, and mosses also make there homes in extreme habitats.



Complete text: Extremophiles - Extreme Organisms (thoughtco.com)
 
Top