What is the most basic and numerous form of life on our planet?

What is the most basic and numerous form of life on our planet? Pro-kary-otes “before the nut or kernal” or nuclei”

Archaebacteria vs. Eubacteria Bacteria or prokaryotes Cells without nuclei “old”-est “good”, common Extremopliles – “Friend of extreme places” Most numerous organism on earth, more complex

Basic Prokaryote Outside DNA Capsule Inside Cell Wall Cytoplasm Plasma Membrane Pili Flagellum

Conjugating Bacterium Pili

Endospores Highly resistant to hostile physical and chemical conditions…

Making a Living on the Edge of Life… micron or um = 1 x 10-6 m

Making a Living on the Edge … Can a living system of organisms exist in the absence of light? Where are these living systems found? What are these kinds of living ecosystems called? What provides the energy for the “Producers” in these living systems?

Cave & Caverns... Reading: Movile Cave, Romania

Making a Living on the Edge … Organisms that are able to make their own food in environments which exhibit extraordinary conditions such as very high temperatures, very high salt conditions or very low or very high pH values, are called… Autotrophic

Rock surfaces…As a symbiont Cyanobacteria Fungus Rock Surface Lichen

Soil surfaces…Cryptobiotic Community crypto ~ biotic hidden ~ life

Salt Flats …with and in Salt Crystals Owens Dry Lake Halo ~ philic Salt ~ loving ...bacteria

Hot Springs…Hot, Acidic, Sulfur, Home Home for Thermophilic Anaerobic Sulfur Bacteria

Mudpots... Home for Sulfur Loving or Thermophile Cyanobacteria

Wetlands … “black Mud” Communities Methane Producing Bacteria 4H2 + CO2 --> CH4 + 2H2O + ATP Obligate Anaerobes “Swamp Gas”

Acidic Waters w/o O2…Home Sweet Home Iron Bacteria Fe+2 (ferrous) --> Fe+3 (ferric) + e-

Acidic Waters w/o O2…Home Sweet Home Iron Bacteria

Acidic Waters w/o O2…Home Sweet Home Most of the worlds iron ore originated from the waste of Iron Bacteria. These bacteria used iron dissolved in sea water like we use oxygen. These iron-reducing bacteria coated the ocean floor with an iron-rich slime that eventually hardened into iron ore. Iron-reducing bacteria still live today in places wet places that lack oxygen, like the “black mud” below the water in our marsh.

Ammonia…to the Staff of Life…Glucose Nitrifying Bacteria Nitrosomonas sp. Nitrite 6 CO2 + 6 NH3 + 6 O2 --> C6 H12 O6 + 6 HNO3 Global Nitrogen Cycle 6 CO2 + 6 HNO3 + 6 O2 --> C6 H12 O6 + 6 HNO2 Nitrate Nitrobacter sp.

Ammonia…to the Staff of Life…Glucose Nitrifying Bacteria Nitrosomonas sp.

N I T R O G E N

Ammonia…to the Staff of Life…Glucose Nitrifying Bacteria Global Nitrogen Cycle Instead of light energy, the nitrifying bacteria use chemical ammonia (NH3) as an energy source for the synthesis of ATP. Nitrifying bacteria are abundant in soils and shallow muds.

Deep Sea Cold Water Springs & Seeps An Underwater Cold Water Brine Pond Brine Pool Muscles An organism that obtains its energy from the oxidation of chemicals. Tube Worms Bacteria Mats

Deep Sea Cold Water Springs & Seeps Where cold seeps have been found.

…Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents Hydrogen Sulfide H2S Iron monosulfide FeS + Iron Pyrite FeS2 Hydrogen Gas H2 3 to 380 degrees C, No light, 4000m deep

…Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents 4 um long purple bacteria on the surface of a pyrite crystal.

…Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents • These bacteria are found... • freely floating • growing in mats • growing in the guts of tube worms as symbionts • on the gills of filter feeders as symbionts

…Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents 3m long Tube worms

…Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents 12 mm long Vent Crabs

…Deep Sea Hydrothermal Vents 20 cm mussel-like bivalves. Shellfish are filter feeders.

When the sun does not shine… Chemosynthesis Chemo ~ syn ~ thesis Chemical ~ together ~ food The process of using chemical energy to create food.

Organism that do Chemosynthesis are... Chemoautotrophic Chemo ~ auto ~ trophic Chemical ~ self ~ to nourish An organism that obtains its energy from the oxidation of chemicals. Oxidation ~ Loss of Electrons  Breaking of bonds  Energy release Special Enzymes do this

When the sun does not shine… Chemosynthetic Ecosystem An isolated system of interdependent organisms that depend upon the abilities of chemoautotrophs to produce the food and organic compounds needed by the entire living system through carbon fixation by chemosynthetic biochemical pathways

Chemoautotrophs make their food by… Oxidation ...removing one or more electrons from an atom, ion, or molecule... 24 electrons 12H2S+ 6CO2 ->C6H12O6 + 6H20 + 12S …creating a gradient that does work!

S U L F U R

Chemoautotrophs…Oxidation Rnx 2H+ + S + 2 e- Inside the ORGA NISM H2S

Chemoautotrophs… Making a Gradient The e- energy and charge are used to move the H+ beyond a membrane barrier in order to create a concentration gradient.

Chemoautotrophs…Electron Transport H2S

Chemoautotrophs… Gradient @ Work

Chemoautotrophs…ATP “Energy Currency” 2H+ chemiosmotic theory

Chemoautotrophs…ATP “Energy Currency” Work done as the H+ move with the concentration gradient through an enzyme creates ATP from ADP + P

Chemoautotrophs…ATP “Energy Currency” ATP created through this process are used by chemoautotrophs to make molecules used for food (glucose) and to gather and make molecules needed to support cellular process.

Where the sun does not shine... • Recipe for Chemosynthesis: • Carbon Dioxide [CO2] • (carbon source) • Oxidizable compounds • (electron donors) • +/- Molecular Oxygen [O2] • AEROBIC • ANAEROBIC • Appropriate Organism • Appropriate Environment

Where the sun does not shine... Compounds that can be easily oxidized (lose electrons) include: H2, hydrogen gas - CH4, methane gas CO, carbon monoxide gas -S, sulfur H2S, hydrogen sulfide-NH3, ammonia NO2, nitrate - N2O, nitrous oxide Fe+2, Iron - Mn +2, manganese

Where the sun does not shine... • Organisms that create their own food by oxidizing inorganic chemicals as an energy source and carbon dioxide as their carbon source are called... • Chemo ~ litho ~ auto ~ trophs • Chemical ~ stone ~ self ~ feeder

What’s the big deal ? • What are some reasons for why we should study Chemolithoautotrophs? • cycles • nutrients • food chains • mining • antibiotics • search for extra-terrestriallife

Where the sun does not shine... • Oxidizable Compound(electron donor) • Hydrogen - H2 Alcaligenes eutrophus Carbon - COPseudomonas • Monoxide carboxydovorans • Ammonium- NH4+ Nitrosomonas europaea • Nitrite - NO2-Nitrobacter winogradskyi

Making them feel at home…LAB • Making and Observing a Winogradsky columns

What is the most basic and numerous form of life on our planet?