New Discovery relevance to the Origin of Life:

[beecee]

https://phys.org/news/2018-05-scientists-discovery-yellowstone-extremely-relevant.html

Scientists' discovery in Yellowstone 'extremely relevant' to origin of life

May 15, 2018 by Evelyn Boswell, Montana State University

Montana State University scientists have found a new lineage of microbes living in Yellowstone National Park's thermal features that sheds light on the origin of life, the evolution of archaeal life and the importance of iron in early life.

Professor William Inskeep and his team of researchers published their findings May 14 in the scientific journal Nature Microbiology.

"The discovery of archaeal lineages is critical to our understanding of the universal tree of life and evolutionary history of the Earth," the group wrote. "Geochemically diverse thermal environments in Yellowstone National Park provide unprecedented opportunities for studying archaea in habitats that may represent analogues of early Earth."

Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-05-scientists-discovery-yellowstone-extremely-relevant.html#jCp

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the paper:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-018-0163-1

Marsarchaeota are an aerobic archaeal lineage abundant in geothermal iron oxide microbial mats

 

Abstract

The discovery of archaeal lineages is critical to our understanding of the universal tree of life and evolutionary history of the Earth. Geochemically diverse thermal environments in Yellowstone National Park provide unprecedented opportunities for studying archaea in habitats that may represent analogues of early Earth. Here, we report the discovery and characterization of a phylum-level archaeal lineage proposed and herein referred to as the ‘Marsarchaeota’, after the red planet. The Marsarchaeota contains at least two major subgroups prevalent in acidic, microaerobic geothermal Fe(III) oxide microbial mats across a temperature range from ~50–80 °C. Metagenomics, single-cell sequencing, enrichment culturing and in situ transcriptional analyses reveal their biogeochemical role as facultative aerobic chemoorganotrophs that may also mediate the reduction of Fe(III). Phylogenomic analyses of replicate assemblies corresponding to two groups of Marsarchaeota indicate that they branch between the Crenarchaeota and all other major archaeal lineages. Transcriptomic analyses of several Fe(III) oxide mat communities reveal that these organisms were actively transcribing two different terminal oxidase complexes in situ and genes comprising an F420-dependent butanal catabolism. The broad distribution of Marsarchaeota in geothermal, microaerobic Fe(III) oxide mats suggests that similar habitat types probably played an important role in the evolution of archaea.

 

 

[CharonY]

It is kind of interesting that in the original article the origin of life aspect was more regarding the utilization of iron, whereas the news articles claim that the new lineages themselves shed light into the origin of life. Considering that they were looking at microaerophilic systems that is clearly not the case. Though to be fair, I suspect folks are getting less excited about implications for iron cycling, which is the arguably more interesting aspect of it.