<
https://theconversation.com/how-we-found-microbes-rarer-than-a-ticket-to-the-moon-192562>
"You are more likely to take a trip to the Moon than to see a microbe called
Legendrea loyezae under a microscope. Nasa’s Apollo programme has sent a
total of 24 people to the Moon between 1968 and 1972. Only four people
(including us) have ever found
Legendrea loyezae from its discovery in 1908
to our recently published study.
Considering the expense, it makes sense that the number of people who journeyed
to the Moon would be low. But peeking into the microscopic realm doesn’t
require a billion-dollar budget, only a microscope and someone willing to sit
in front of it.
Our recent study uncovered 20 new species of microbes as well as 100 rare ones.
Each DNA specimen we find gives another piece of the evolution puzzle.
Scientists can use this jigsaw to analyse how an organism works. For example,
some genes hint about how a being respires. Or it can give information about
the organism’s place on the tree of life.
The reason so few scientists have seen these microbes is because undersampling
is a major issue. This means most research teams take samples from only a few
or even just one location.
Our most recent investigation, which took two years, involved the collection
and investigation of well over 1,000 samples. From the lakes and ponds in
Warsaw, Poland, to marine sediments in the North Sea, and the Mediterranean off
the coasts of Italy and Portugal, to chalk streams in Dorset, UK we searched
for microbes. And it paid off: we found more than 500 species, including the
rare and new ones."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
