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Scientists from the Institute of Ocean Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin have discovered microbes that may contribute to the limitation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere and possibly , cleaning up oil spills. The new microbial species are genetically different, so different from those studied previously, they represent new branches in the tree of life.
"This shows that the depths of the oceans contain unexplored and expansive biodiversity, and that microscopic organisms are capable of degrading oil and other harmful chemicals," said Assistant Professor of Marine Science, Brett Baker. , the principal investigator of the study.
"Under the ocean floor, there are now huge reservoirs of hydrocarbon gases, including methane, propane, butane, and others, and these microbes prevent greenhouse gases from occurring. Be released in the atmosphere. "
DNA analysis
Baker studies the relationship between microbial communities and nutrients in their environment by extracting DNA from sediments and microbes in nature. His team is sequencing DNA by assembling individual genomes to understand how microbes consume different nutrients.
"People have been trying to understand the tree of life since Darwin came up with the concept over 150 years ago – it's still this moving target right now," said Baker, who was doing so previously part of a team that: mapped the most complete genomic tree of life to date.
"Trying to map the tree is really crucial to understanding all aspects of biology.With DNA sequencing and the computer approaches that we use, we are getting closer and things are growing rapidly."
"For this we try to search for organisms that have already been studied and look for similarities and differences," said Dombrowski, currently at the Royal Netherlands Institute of Marine Research. "It may seem easy at first, but it really is not the case, because often more than half of the genes we find are so far unknown and unknown."
Just the beginning
Until now, researchers have recovered 551 genomes, 22 of which represented new entries into the tree of life. Baker thinks this is just the beginning.
"We think it's probably only the tip of the iceberg in terms of diversity in the Guaymas Basin," Baker said. "So, we're doing a lot more DNA sequencing to try to figure out how much is left over, this document is really our first clue to what these things are and what they do."
For this study, the researchers analyzed sediments 2,000 meters deep. At this beach, volcanic activity raises temperatures to around 200 degrees Celsius.
Microbial samples absorbing greenhouse gases were collected by the Alvin submarine. The ship, famous for having found the Titanic, is ideal for extreme environments.
The new study was published in Nature Communications this week.
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