Graphic by Lucy Osborn.
Imagine living things that survive in extreme conditions: temperature, pressure, radiation, acid. Creatures that eat metal as food and have potentially alien origins. Beings that make the resilience of cockroaches look insignificant.
These microorganisms are more than a sci-fi horror conception. Extremophiles are the research focus of Robert Kelly, head of NC State’s Kelly Lab. He leads a team of researchers interested in extreme organisms and their implications for science.
Angela Kontometros, a graduate student in the MALS program, said she feels some reservations about the organisms.
“Extremophiles are so interesting, but also a little bit scary, because I think anything that's unknown or that hasn't had a lot of research done can be intimidating,” Kontemetros said. “[It’s] kind of scary to see what scientists would find out about them.”
Despite their strange and intimidating nature, Kelly said extremophiles are not as frightening as they might seem.
“The good news is, so far, they're not pathogenic,” Kelly said. “They don't seem to cause any harm to anybody. But, of course, we don't know everything yet, so we'll see what happens. That's the first thing we look at [when] we try to work with a new bug, is there any danger? My colleagues will joke that if they were infectious, we'd have a lot more money for research.”
Kelly said even if the microorganisms did suddenly become harmful, there is one way to protect against an impending extremophile takeover.
“They can't survive fires,” Kelly said.
Even if they won’t hurt humans and animals, extremophiles can pose environmental challenges.
“In a sense, they cause pollution,” Kelly said. “In some cases, when they degrade metals they generate a lot of acid, which can cause problems with rivers and they make methane and things
However, there are efforts to use extremophiles to combat environmental damage as they can thrive amongst toxic pollutants. Their ability to thrive in extreme conditions fills unique roles in addressing environmental sustainability.
The concept of organisms surviving in extreme conditions allows scientists to conceptualize space exploration in places where humans have failed. Kelly said the research field has previously received funding to explore the organisms as candidates for life on Mars and Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons.
With space exploration in mind, Kelly said extremophiles may also be the key to understanding extraterrestrials.
“The universe is just enormous,” Kelly said. “And to think there aren't planets like Earth out there would be silly. I think the first life forms we find are going to be organisms like these.”
Research on the organisms contributes across a breadth of fields.
“[Extremophile research is] driven by evolutionary questions, astrobiology, biotechnology and just basic science about how different metabolic features compare across organisms,” Kelly said.
The Kelly Lab will continue to research the physiology and biochemistry of the organisms, alongside other fundamental information. Kelly said that the work they do is not easy for a scientist to undertake.
“They're challenging to work with because it's difficult to learn how to grow them,” Kelly said.
Article originally published via Technician, found here.
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