Physiological Diversity of Hyperthermophilic Microorganisms in Diverse Hot Environments

马萨诸塞大学（University of Massachusetts）的德里克·洛夫利（Derek Lovley）博士获得了一笔拨款，用于研究一种被称为超嗜热菌的新型微生物，这种微生物生活在沸水甚至更高的温度下。本研究的目的是评估超嗜热菌可以生存的环境条件范围，以及超嗜热菌可以用来获得能量以支持其生长的反应类型。例如，生命可能存在的温度上限将被仔细地评估。研究将探索一种假设，即存在各种各样的超嗜热菌，它们能够在缺氧的情况下生活，通过将一些高温环境中丰富的氧化铁或硫还原，将碳氢化合物氧化成二氧化碳。还将研究在高酸性条件下可在可溶性铁上生长的超嗜热微生物的可能性。分离超嗜热菌的新方法将用于分离地球上仍然存在的微生物，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。这些研究有望提高对热的早期地球上微生物生命如何进化以及现代环境中热微生物生态系统功能的理解，例如与陆地温泉、海洋热液喷口和深层地下有关的环境。这些结果将有助于进一步确定在其他行星上可能发现生命的条件。这项研究通过为有毒污染物的修复和油藏中碳氢化合物的回收提供新的策略，有可能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，并可能产生具有工业应用价值的新型热稳定酶。

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.