Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues
Among the celestial bodies in the Solar System, Mars currently represents the main target for the search for life beyond Earth. However, its surface is constantly exposed to high doses of cosmic rays (CRs) that may pose a threat to any biological system. For this reason, investigations into the limi...
Published in: | Life |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Text |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
2020
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 |
id |
ftmdpi:oai:mdpi.com:/2075-1729/10/12/306/ |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftmdpi:oai:mdpi.com:/2075-1729/10/12/306/ 2023-08-20T04:00:34+02:00 Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues Lorenzo Aureli Claudia Pacelli Alessia Cassaro Akira Fujimori Ralf Moeller Silvano Onofri agris 2020-11-24 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 EN eng Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Life; Volume 10; Issue 12; Pages: 306 cosmic rays accelerated iron ions Mars fungi life on Mars Text 2020 ftmdpi https://doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 2023-08-01T00:31:08Z Among the celestial bodies in the Solar System, Mars currently represents the main target for the search for life beyond Earth. However, its surface is constantly exposed to high doses of cosmic rays (CRs) that may pose a threat to any biological system. For this reason, investigations into the limits of resistance of life to space relevant radiation is fundamental to speculate on the chance of finding extraterrestrial organisms on Mars. In the present work, as part of the STARLIFE project, the responses of dried colonies of the black fungus Cryomyces antarcticus Culture Collection of Fungi from Extreme Environments (CCFEE) 515 to the exposure to accelerated iron (LET: 200 keV/μm) ions, which mimic part of CRs spectrum, were investigated. Samples were exposed to the iron ions up to 1000 Gy in the presence of Martian regolith analogues. Our results showed an extraordinary resistance of the fungus in terms of survival, recovery of metabolic activity and DNA integrity. These experiments give new insights into the survival probability of possible terrestrial-like life forms on the present or past Martian surface and shallow subsurface environments. Text Antarc* antarcticus MDPI Open Access Publishing Life 10 12 306 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
MDPI Open Access Publishing |
op_collection_id |
ftmdpi |
language |
English |
topic |
cosmic rays accelerated iron ions Mars fungi life on Mars |
spellingShingle |
cosmic rays accelerated iron ions Mars fungi life on Mars Lorenzo Aureli Claudia Pacelli Alessia Cassaro Akira Fujimori Ralf Moeller Silvano Onofri Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues |
topic_facet |
cosmic rays accelerated iron ions Mars fungi life on Mars |
description |
Among the celestial bodies in the Solar System, Mars currently represents the main target for the search for life beyond Earth. However, its surface is constantly exposed to high doses of cosmic rays (CRs) that may pose a threat to any biological system. For this reason, investigations into the limits of resistance of life to space relevant radiation is fundamental to speculate on the chance of finding extraterrestrial organisms on Mars. In the present work, as part of the STARLIFE project, the responses of dried colonies of the black fungus Cryomyces antarcticus Culture Collection of Fungi from Extreme Environments (CCFEE) 515 to the exposure to accelerated iron (LET: 200 keV/μm) ions, which mimic part of CRs spectrum, were investigated. Samples were exposed to the iron ions up to 1000 Gy in the presence of Martian regolith analogues. Our results showed an extraordinary resistance of the fungus in terms of survival, recovery of metabolic activity and DNA integrity. These experiments give new insights into the survival probability of possible terrestrial-like life forms on the present or past Martian surface and shallow subsurface environments. |
format |
Text |
author |
Lorenzo Aureli Claudia Pacelli Alessia Cassaro Akira Fujimori Ralf Moeller Silvano Onofri |
author_facet |
Lorenzo Aureli Claudia Pacelli Alessia Cassaro Akira Fujimori Ralf Moeller Silvano Onofri |
author_sort |
Lorenzo Aureli |
title |
Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues |
title_short |
Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues |
title_full |
Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues |
title_fullStr |
Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues |
title_full_unstemmed |
Iron Ion Particle Radiation Resistance of Dried Colonies of Cryomyces antarcticus Embedded in Martian Regolith Analogues |
title_sort |
iron ion particle radiation resistance of dried colonies of cryomyces antarcticus embedded in martian regolith analogues |
publisher |
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 |
op_coverage |
agris |
genre |
Antarc* antarcticus |
genre_facet |
Antarc* antarcticus |
op_source |
Life; Volume 10; Issue 12; Pages: 306 |
op_relation |
https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/life10120306 |
container_title |
Life |
container_volume |
10 |
container_issue |
12 |
container_start_page |
306 |
_version_ |
1774718938838466560 |