Bacteria can travel thousands of miles through the air

March 25 (UPI) – Scientists previously thought bacteria needed to travel to the globe. However, new research suggests the bacteria of miles through the air.

Konstantin Severinov, a professor of molecular biology and biochemistry at Rutgers University, said in a news release. "Because the bacteria we study in very hot water – about 160 degrees Fahrenheit – in remote places, it is not possible to imagine that animals, birds or humans transport them."

Severinov et al.

To understand the links between bacterial communities, scientists studied the genetic signatures left by interactions between bacteria and viruses.

Bacteriophage, viruses that infect bacteria, are everywhere. They are the most abundant life form on the planet. They also have significant – and measurable – influence on microbial communities.

For the study, Severinov and his research partners collected Thermus thermophilus bacteria from hot springs across the globe – in Chile, Italy and Russia. The samples were separated by thousands of miles.

When bacteria are infected by viruses, "molecular memories" are stored in sections of bacterial DNA called CRISPR arrays. The surviving bacteria cells on the snippets of viral DNA, the memories, the next generation.

Before the study, scientists hypothesized the molecular memories of bacteria living on opposite sides of the planet would be quite different. Researchers also assumed the bacteria species would be shaped by unique evolutionary histories.

"What we found, however, is that there were plenty of shared memories – identical parts of viral DNA stored in the same order in the DNA of remote hot springs," Severinov said. "Our analysis may be more important than antibiotic resistance genes and may also be dispersed by air instead of human travelers."

Scientists shared their findings Monday in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. In followup studies, study authors, planes, drones and research balloons to study bacteria in air samples at different altitudes across the globe.