Mexico City /
A group of scientists of the University of Tokyo have discovered bags of microbes living inside a fracture sealed in a rock 2 billion years of antiquity.
The rock was excavated in the Bushveld Igneous Complex in South Africaan area known for its rich mineral deposits. This is the oldest example of live microbes found in an ancient rock discovered until now.
The team involved in the study was based in his previous work to perfect a technique that involves three types of images (infrared spectroscopy, electron microscopy and fluorescent microscopy) to confirm that the microbes were indigenous to the sample of the old core and not caused by contamination during the recovery and study process.
This research on these microbes could help understand best the very early evolution of life, as well as the search for extraterrestrial life in old rock samples similar brought from Mars.
Scientists have discoveredThe oldest living microbes known to datesealed during two billion years in a rock fracture almost 15 meters below the surface of the South African soil. This discovery could be the key to understand the early stages of evolutionnot only on Earthbut also potentially on other planets.
This discovery, led by researchers from the University of Tokyosheds new light on the origins of life on Earth and opens fascinating possibilities for the search for extraterrestrial life
“We didn’t know if 2 billion-year-old rocks were habitable. Until now, the oldest geological layer in which living microorganisms had been found was a 100-million-year-old deposit beneath the ocean floor, so this is a very exciting discovery. By studying the DNA and genomes of microbes like these, we may be able to understand the evolution of very early life on Earth,” said Yohey Suzuki, lead author and associate professor at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Science. .
“I am very interested in the existence of subsurface microbes not only on Earth, but also in the possibility of finding them on other planets,” Suzuki said.
“NASA’s Perseverance rover on Mars is about to bring back rocks of a similar age to those we used in this study. Finding microbial life in samples from Earth from 2 billion years ago and being able to precisely confirm their authenticity excites me about what we might be able to find now in samples from Mars.”
JCM
