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Extremophilic models for astrobiology: haloarchaeal survival strategies and pigments for remote sensing

  • SPECIAL FEATURE: REVIEW
  • 12th International Congress on Extremophiles
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Abstract

Recent progress in extremophile biology, exploration of planetary bodies in the solar system, and the detection and characterization of extrasolar planets are leading to new insights in the field of astrobiology and possible distribution of life in the universe. Among the many extremophiles on Earth, the halophilic Archaea (Haloarchaea) are especially attractive models for astrobiology, being evolutionarily ancient and physiologically versatile, potentially surviving in a variety of planetary environments and with relevance for in situ life detection. Haloarchaea are polyextremophilic with tolerance of saturating salinity, anaerobic conditions, high levels of ultraviolet and ionizing radiation, subzero temperatures, desiccation, and toxic ions. Haloarchaea survive launches into Earth’s stratosphere encountering conditions similar to those found on the surface of Mars. Studies of their unique proteins are revealing mechanisms permitting activity and function in high ionic strength, perchlorates, and subzero temperatures. Haloarchaea also produce spectacular blooms visible from space due to synthesis of red–orange isoprenoid carotenoids used for photoprotection and photorepair processes and purple retinal chromoproteins for phototrophy and phototaxis. Remote sensing using visible and infrared spectroscopy has shown that haloarchaeal pigments exhibit both a discernable peak of absorption and a reflective “green edge”. Since the pigments produce remotely detectable features, they may influence the spectrum from an inhabited exoplanet imaged by a future large space-based telescope. In this review, we focus primarily on studies of two Haloarchaea, Halobacterium sp. NRC-1 and Halorubrum lacusprofundi.

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Abbreviations

UV:

Ultraviolet

LUCA:

Last universal common ancestor

pI:

Isoelectric point

HOG:

Haloarchaeal orthologous group

BR:

Bacteriorhodopsin

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Acknowledgements

Exobiology research in the S.D. laboratory is supported by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Grants NNX15AM07G and NNH18ZDA001N and biomedical research is supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant R21 AI139808. E.S. is supported by a NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellowship, administered by the Universities Space Research Association, and by the NASA Astrobiology Institute’s Alternative Earths and Virtual Planetary Laboratory teams under Cooperative Agreement Nos. NNA15BB03A and NNA13AA93A, respectively. The Virtual Planetary Laboratory is also supported by the NASA Astrobiology Program under Grant Number 80NSSC18K0829.

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  1. Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Shiladitya DasSarma, Priya DasSarma & Victoria J. Laye

  2. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Riverside, CA, USA

    Edward W. Schwieterman

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DasSarma, S., DasSarma, P., Laye, V.J. et al. Extremophilic models for astrobiology: haloarchaeal survival strategies and pigments for remote sensing. Extremophiles 24, 31–41 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00792-019-01126-3

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