Journal
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Volume 107, Issue 17, Pages 7835-7840Publisher
NATL ACAD SCIENCES
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1000557107
Keywords
biosphere function; chaotropic agents; fungal ecology and limits of life; osmotic stress; psychrophilic bacteria
Categories
Funding
- Natural Environment Research Council [NEE0168041]
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [BBF0034711]
- Beaufort Marine Research Award for Marine Biodiscovery
- Department of Education and Learning (Northern Ireland)
- Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation
- Queen's University
- Betty McQuitty Travel Fund
- BBSRC [BB/F003471/1] Funding Source: UKRI
- NERC [NE/E016251/1, NE/E016804/1] Funding Source: UKRI
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [BB/F003471/1] Funding Source: researchfish
- Natural Environment Research Council [NE/E016804/1, NE/E016251/1] Funding Source: researchfish
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Microbial cells, and ultimately the Earth's biosphere, function within a narrow range of physicochemical conditions. For the majority of ecosystems, productivity is cold-limited, and it is microbes that represent the failure point. This study was carried out to determine if naturally occurring solutes can extend the temperature windows for activity of microorganisms. We found that substances known to disorder cellular macromolecules (chaotropes) did expand microbial growth windows, fungi preferentially accumulated chaotropic metabolites at low temperature, and chemical activities of solutes determined microbial survival at extremes of temperature as well as pressure. This information can enhance the precision of models used to predict if extraterrestrial and other hostile environments are able to support life; furthermore, chaotropes may be used to extend the growth windows for key microbes, such as saprotrophs, in cold ecosystems and manmade biomes.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available