The water in theYellowstone NationalPark hot springs shownhere is around 160°F(70°C). Biologistsassumed that no speciesof organisms couldlive in water aboveabout 130°F (55°C), sothey were surprisedto find several speciesof bacteria there, nowcalled thermophiles(“heat-lovers”). You’ve learned in this chapter how an enzymefrom one species, Thermus aquaticus, made feasible one of themost important DNA-based techniques used in labs today.Identify the enzyme, and indicate the value of its being isolatedfrom a thermophile. Suggest other reasons why enzymes fromthis bacterium (or other thermophiles) might also be valuable

The water in theYellowstone NationalPark hot springs shownhere is around 160°F(70°C). Biologistsassumed that no speciesof organisms couldlive in water aboveabout 130°F (55°C), sothey were surprisedto find several speciesof bacteria there, nowcalled thermophiles(“heat-lovers”). You’ve learned in this chapter how an enzymefrom one species, Thermus aquaticus, made feasible one of themost important DNA-based techniques used in labs today.Identify the enzyme, and indicate the value of its being isolatedfrom a thermophile. Suggest other reasons why enzymes fromthis bacterium (or other thermophiles) might also be valuable

Biology Today and Tomorrow without Physiology (MindTap Course List)

5th Edition

ISBN:9781305117396

Author:Cecie Starr, Christine Evers, Lisa Starr

Publisher:Cecie Starr, Christine Evers, Lisa Starr

Chapter13: Early Life Forms And The Viruses

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 3SQ

See similar textbooks

Similar questions

Will autotrophic organisms contain more or less 12Cin their organic compounds than was present in the CO2that fed them? Why would SIP using 15NO32 not beuseful for identifying bacteria carrying out nitraterespiration?
The organophosphate Azinphos-methyl has a96-hour LC50 value of 3 ppb for rainbow trout. Inan unfortunate incident, 200 g of this pesticidewas sprayed on a field, and a subsequent heavyrainfall washed 35% of it into a nearby lakehaving a surface area of 30,000 m2and anaverage depth of 0.5 m. Would the pesticideconcentration in the lake water have beensufficient to kill a significant fraction of therainbow trout in the lake?
Design an experiment for measuring the activity of sulfuroxidizing bacteria in soil. If only certain species of the sulfuroxidizers present were metabolically active, how couldyou tell this? How would you prove that your activitymeasurement was due to biological activity?
Where in the human body would you expect to find an obligate aerobe? Where would you expect to find an obligate anaerobe? Look up some examples of each and indicate where they may be found inthe body.
Most living organisms cannot survive at temperature above 450C. How are some microbes able to live in habitats with temperatures exceeding 1000C?
Discuss the possibility of life on Mars. In reference to extremophiles. Defend or refute this statement: The upper-temperature limit to life is unrelated to the stability of proteins or nucleic acids. How influential is microbial activity on the geological processes of mineral formation and deposition compared to biological processes? (argue both sides of this one). What challenges and advantages do you see with the use of extremeophiles in industrial or bioremediation applications?
EVOLUTION CONNECTION This chapter explains how theemergent properties of water contribute to the suitabilityof the environment for life. Until fairly recently, scientistsassumed that other physical requirements for life includeda moderate range of temperature, pH, atmospheric pressure,and salinity, as well as low levels of toxic chemicals. Thatview has changed with the discovery of organisms knownas extremophiles, which have been found flourishing inhot, acidic sulfur springs, around hydrothermal ventsdeep in the ocean, and in soils with high levels of toxicmetals. Why would astrobiologists be interested in studyingextremophiles? What does the existence of life in suchextreme environments say about the possibility of life onother planets?
Could anaerobes and aerobes coexist in the same habitat? Why orwhy not?
Can the amount ofavailable energy in a giventrophic level be larger thanthe available energy in inferiortrophic levels? What does thatcondition means to theconformation of the energypyramids?
Earlier biochemists called substrate cycles “futile cycles.” Why might they have chosen such a name? Why is it something of a misnomer?
. Define the following terms:a. redox reactionb. resonance hybridc. chemolithotrophd. electron donore. biogeochemical cycle
What could thwart microbial bioremediation of a sitethat contains buried nuclear weapons that are leakinguranium?