Occupied and Empty Regions of the Space of Extremophile Parameters

Robinson, Jeffrey M.; Mikucki, Jill A.

doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-811940-2.00009-5

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 185 publications

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“…The DHABs provide an opportunity to explore the impact of multiple extremes on microbes, especially the interactions of high pressure and high salinity, including both kosmotropic and chaotropic salts. It is well known that microbial activities are influenced by high pressure (Tamburini et al, 2013) and high salinity (Oren, 2011), but synergistic and antagonistic effects on microbes of multiple environmental stressors, despite being the norm, requires much more in-depth investigation in order to predict biological processes on Earth and elsewhere (Harrison et al, 2013;Robinson and Mikucki, 2018). The classic experiments by Yayanos (1986) investigated the interaction of temperature and pressure on the growth rate of isolates, while Kaye and Baross (2004) showed improved growth of Halomonas strains under high-pressure at intermediate, compared with low, salinities.…”

Section: Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Deep-Sea Brines as Potential Terrestrial Analogues of Oceans in the Icy Moons of the Outer Solar System

Antunes¹,

Olsson-Francis²,

McGenity³

2020

Current Issues in Molecular Biology

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Several icy moons of the outer solar system have been receiving considerable attention and are currently seen as major targets for astrobiological research and the search for life beyond our planet. Despite the limited amount of data on the oceans of these moons, we expect them to be composed of brines with variable chemistry, some degree of hydrothermal input, and be under high pressure conditions. The combination of these different conditions significantly limits the number of extreme locations, which can be used as terrestrial analogues. Here we propose the use of deep-sea brines as potential terrestrial analogues to the oceans in the outer solar system. We provide an overview of what is currently known about the conditions on the icy moons of the outer solar system and their oceans as well as on deep-sea brines of the Red Sea and the Mediterranean and their microbiology. We also identify several threads of future research, which would be particularly useful in the context of future exploration of these extra-terrestrial oceans. The icy moons of the Outer Solar SystemIcy moons are natural satellites that are characterised by a surface that is composed predominantly of ice, which may contain a sub-surface ocean,123 caister.com/cimb Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. Vol. 38 Deep-Sea Brines Antunes et al. ! 124 caister.com/cimb Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. Vol. 38 Deep-Sea Brines Antunes et al.Sub-surface ocean Contrary to previous assumptions, the ocean of Enceladus is believed to have a global distribution rather than being restricted to polar regions (Patthoff and Kattenhorn, 2011). The energy required to maintain liquid water most likely originates from the dissipation of tidal energy from the friction of the sub-surface ocean with the internal silicate interior (Nimmo et al., 2007).Information regarding the composition of the ocean has been obtained from plume analysis, which showed that particle emissions are dominated by water ice and is rich in sodium and potassium salts (0.5 to 2 % by mass), but also contains sodium bicarbonate/ sodium carbonate (Postberg et al., 2011). The ocean is expected to contain low concentrations of ammonia, methane, carbon dioxide and molecular hydrogen (Waite et al., 2017). These elements are potentially produced as a result of geochemical reactions occurring at the interface of the chondrite-like core and the ocean at temperatures below 100°C (Waite et al., 2017). The circulation of the water would drive the chemical evolution of both the rock material and the ocean water, producing a chemical gradient, which could be used by microorganisms to generate energy (Barge and White, 2017). The presence of silica nanoparticles in the plumes is also evidence for hydrothermal reactions occurring in the interior, which may be the source of molecular hydrogen (Sekine et al., 2015).

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