Bacteria can live in arsenic environment

Bacteria can live and thrive in arsenic - the most toxic substance on Earth.

GFAJ-1 bacteria . (Photo Noticias24.com)

That is the latest discovery, published by the scientists of the US Aerospace Agency (NASA) in Science magazine on December 2.

This finding is thought to upset the long-standing definition of the science of the factors that make up the life of the Earth, while opening up hope in finding more species on their planet. me and even in other planets.

American scientists took a sample of the bacterium named GFAJ-1 at Lake Mono in eastern California and conducted a laboratory study.

The results show that this bacterium is not only capable of surviving in high concentration arsenic environments but can also grow thanks to the transformation and incorporation of this toxic element into their DNA. This proves that arsenic can be a nutritious substance for some species of organisms.

The new discovery adds to the list of international scientists about the elements necessary for life on Earth, including carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur.

These are also the elements that make up nucleic acids - A, C, T and G in DNA as well as proteins and lipids.

According to US researchers, the discovery shows that scientists still know very little about the types of life on Earth. The work can also assist experts in the study of life on other planets and the Moon.

Lake Mono is a saltwater lake located in eastern California, where volcanoes are located. NASA has been conducting research here for many years because lake water contains unusually high levels of salt, minerals and arsenic.