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1d ago
This tiny organism refused to die under Mars-like conditions
- Researchers showed baker's yeast can survive Mars-like shock waves and perchlorate exposure, with growth slowing but not stopping.
- Survival is linked to ribonucleoprotein condensates that protect and reorganize RNA during stress.
- Yeast forms stress granules and P-bodies under shock, aiding endurance of Mars-like stressors.
- Perchlorate exposure alone prompts P-body formation, contributing to stress response.
- Yeast strains lacking RNP condensate formation showed lower survival rates.
- The study combines shock physics, chemistry, and molecular biology to explore life under Mars-like stress.
- Baker's yeast could be a useful model for astrobiology and future space missions.
- Researchers conducted experiments at IISc with collaborators from PRL in Ahmedabad.
- The work used a High-Intensity Shock Tube for Astrochemistry (HISTA) to simulate Martian shocks.
- The study builds a case for yeast as a robust model organism in extreme-condition biology.
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