础狈罢础搁颁罢滨颁础鈥橲 鈥� the reddish outflow from the snout of the Taylor glacier 鈥� contain microbes that have survived beneath thick ice for millions of years.
of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and her team analysed the water seeping out from a sub-glacial lake beneath the Taylor glacier in the McMurdo dry valleys. The water stains the ice red because it is rich in iron. DNA analysis showed the bacteria are related to today鈥檚 marine microbes.
The DNA also revealed that the microbes get their energy from reactions that use the sulphur compounds in the water as chemical catalysts. These reactions oxidise organic compounds and reduce the iron in the lake. The free electrons from these reactions provide energy for the bacteria. The dead organic matter was most likely sealed in when the Taylor glacier advanced over the ancient lake about 1.5 to 2 million years ago (Science, ).
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鈥淭rust microbes to do something clever given an unusual niche,鈥� says , a microbiologist at the University of Alberta, Canada.