Physiological Diversity of Hyperthermophilic Microorganisms in Diverse Hot Environments

马萨诸塞大学的德里克·洛夫利博士获得了一项资助，用于研究生活在沸水甚至更高温度下的新型微生物，这种微生物被称为超级嗜热菌。这项研究的目的是评估嗜热菌可以生存的环境条件范围，以及嗜热菌可以用来获得支持其生长的能量的反应类型。例如，将仔细评估可能存在生命的温度上限。将进行研究，以探索这样一种假设，即在一些炎热的环境中，通过将碳氢化合物氧化成二氧化碳，以及还原在某些炎热环境中丰富的铁氧化物或硫，存在着能够在无氧条件下生存的各种超嗜热菌。此外，还将研究在高酸性条件下，是否存在能够在可溶铁上生长的超嗜热菌。分离超嗜热菌的新方法将被用来试图分离仍然存在于地球上的微生物，这些微生物与被认为是地球上所有当前生命的祖先的微生物关系最密切。这些研究预计将增进对炎热的早期地球上微生物生命如何演变的理解，以及炎热的微生物生态系统在现代环境中的功能，例如与陆地温泉、海洋热液喷口和地下深处有关的环境。这一结果将有助于进一步定义在其他行星上可能发现生命的条件。这项研究有可能为修复有毒污染物和从石油储藏库中回收碳氢化合物提出新的战略，从而提供可观的经济效益。这些发现还可能提供有助于寻找矿藏的信息，并可能生产出具有可能工业应用的新的、热稳定的酶。

A grant has been awarded to Dr. Derek Lovley of the University of Massachusetts to investigate novel microorganisms, known as hyperthermophiles, that live at the temperature of boiling water, or even hotter. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the range of environmental conditions under which hyperthermophiles can exist and the types of reactions that hyperthermophiles can use to gain energy to support their growth. For example, the upper temperature limit at which life is possible will be carefully evaluated. Studies will be conducted to explore the hypothesis that there is a wide diversity of hyperthermophiles capable of living in the absence of oxygen by oxidizing hydrocarbons to carbon dioxide with the reduction of the iron oxides or sulfur that are abundant in some hot environments. The possibility that there are hyperthermophiles that can grow on soluble ferric iron under highly acidic conditions will also be studied. New approaches to the isolation of hyperthermophiles will be used in an attempt to isolate the microorganisms that still exist on Earth that are most closely related to the microbes which are thought to be the ancestors of all current life on Earth. These studies are expected to improve the understanding of how microbial life evolved on the hot, early Earth and the functioning of hot microbial ecosystems in modern environments, such as those associated with terrestrial hot springs, marine hydrothermal vents, and the deep subsurface. The results will help further define the conditions under which life might be found on other planets. This research has the potential to provide substantial economic benefit by suggesting new strategies for the remediation of toxic contaminants and the recovery of hydrocarbons from petroleum reservoirs. The findings may also furnish information that will aid in the search for ore deposits and is likely to yield new, heat-stable enzymes with possible industrial applications.