Date of Graduation
12-2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science
Degree Level
Undergraduate
Department
Biological Sciences
Advisor/Mentor
Kral, Timothy
Committee Member/Reader
Lessner, Daniel
Committee Member/Second Reader
Senor, Thomas
Committee Member/Third Reader
Ivey, Mack
Committee Member/Fourth Reader
Kral, Timothy
Abstract
Methanogens, some of Earth’s most primitive prokaryotic organisms, are candidates for possible life forms capable of inhabiting Mars. Specifically, four different species (Methanobacterium formicicum, Methanococcus maripaludis, Methanosarcina barkeri, Methanothermobacter wolfeii) were analyzed for their tolerance to the presence of illite clay. Illite is a crystalline mineral that has been identified from regions of Mars’s surface. Results indicated that all four species grew with some success in the illite at different concentrations. This experimentation with methanogens’ abilities to survive and reproduce in the presence of illite allows for a more accurate understanding of the potential capability of microbial growth in Martian conditions.
Keywords
Methanogenesis, Martian atmosphere, hydrogenotrophy, anaerobic, prokaryotic, archaea
Citation
Kern, C. (2018). Methanogens, Plausible Extraterrestrial Life Forms on Mars, and their Tolerance to Increasing Concentrations of Illite Clay. Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/biscuht/25
Included in
Atmospheric Sciences Commons, Biology Commons, Cellular and Molecular Physiology Commons, Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Commons, Microbial Physiology Commons, Other Microbiology Commons, Soil Science Commons, The Sun and the Solar System Commons