Journey Toward The Center Of The Earth: One-of-a-kind Microorganism Lives All Alone

Thursday, October 9, 2008 - 15:14 in Biology & Nature

The first ecosystem with only a single biological species has been discovered and its genome analyzed by a multi-institutional and multidisciplinary team. Living 2.8 km beneath the surface of the earth in the Mponeng gold mine near Johannesburg, South Africa, the rod-shaped bacterium Desulforudis audaxviator exists in complete isolation, total darkness, a lack of oxygen, and 60-degree-Celsius heat.

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