German scientists from the University of Ludwig-Maximilian in Munich were able to reproduce the conditions of the world’s oldest microorganisms about 4 billion years ago. The experiment showed that the first cells can take energy from the hydrogen released during geochemical reactions of iron and sulfur. The study was published scientifically magazine Ecology and Evolution (Nee).
Experts created miniature analogues of ancient hydrothermal springs (“black cigarettes”) where iron sulfide minerals were formed at high temperatures.
In this environment, metanocaldococcus Jannaschii Archea, the modern analog of ancient microorganisms, did not only survive, but also actively increased using the released hydrogen.
Vanessa Helmbrecht’s leading author of the work, “We did not add food, but the archaeus has grown exponentially. This, the first cells can take energy from simple chemical reactions,” he said.
Archeas used the old metabolic path of Acetyl-KOA, which was preserved in some modern microorganisms. They grew next to the machinery particles (a rare mineral from the sulfur class) – this is consistent with the fossil traces of early life in iron -containing rocks. Scientists believe that such processes can initiate the evolution of life in the world.
Researchers suggest that there may be similar conditions in the Saturn satellite Enzelad, where a hydrotermal activity ocean is hidden under the ice shell. In the near future – to simulate the environmental environment and to check that the backs can survive in such conditions.
Previously, scientists To create The mechanism of life origin in deep space.
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Source: Gazeta
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