BIOLOGISTS FIND WEIRD CAVE LIFE THAT MAY BE 50,000 YEARS OLD

[Judi Lynn]

Feb 17, 5:36 PM EST

BY SETH BORENSTEIN
AP SCIENCE WRITER




BOSTON (AP) -- Scientists examining caves in Mexico have found life trapped in crystals that could be 50,000 years old.

Penelope Boston, head of NASA's Astrobiology Institute, on Friday announced the findings of bizarre and ancient microbes in caves in Nica, Mexico. Her team revived the dormant microbes and plans another genetic analysis of the find.

Boston says the creatures are like time machines and "super life."

If confirmed, the discovery is yet another example of how microbes can survive in extremely harsh conditions on Earth.

More:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SCI_EXTREME_LIFE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2017-02-17-17-19-22

[annabanana]

1. I am

three parts excited and one part apprehensive... What has been awoken? (and, maybe, don't breathe it in)

[longship]

2. Penelope Boston's TED Talk.

Highly recommended. Sorry, no YouTube link to embed. Just click through. It's worth it. Just over 18 minutes.

https://www.ted.com/talks/penelope_boston

[nitpicker]

3. More from the BBC (click to see pictures)

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-39013829

Naica's crystal caves hold long-dormant life

By Jonathan Amos
BBC Science Correspondent, Boston

4 hours ago

It is a remarkable discovery in an amazing place. Scientists have extracted long-dormant microbes from inside the famous giant crystals of the Naica mountain caves in Mexico - and revived them. The organisms were likely encased in the striking shafts of gypsum at least 10,000 years ago, and possibly up to 50,000 years ago. It is another demonstration of the ability of life to adapt and cope in the most hostile of environments.

"Other people have made longer-term claims for the antiquity of organisms that were still alive, but in this case these organisms are all very extraordinary - they are not very closely related to anything in the known genetic databases," said Dr Penelope Boston.
(snip)

These outsized needles of gypsum have grown over millions of years. They are not perfect. In places they have defects - small voids where fluids have collected and become encased. Using sterile tools, Dr Boston and colleagues opened these inclusions and sampled their contents. Not only did they detect the presence of bacteria and archaea, but they were able also to re-animate these organisms in the lab.
(snip)

[Judi Lynn]

4. The crystal forms still don't seem possible at that size! Mind-boggling.

Thanks, so much, for the link.