Bogazici University, Department of Chemistry, Istanbul, Turkey.
Astrobiology. 2010 Sep;10(7):711-6. doi: 10.1089/ast.2009.0457. Epub 2010 Sep 29.
Cyanobacterial colonies produce the radiation-protectant biomolecule scytonemin as part of their response strategy for survival in environmentally stressed conditions in hot and cold deserts. These colonies frequently use sandstone rocks as host matrices for subsurface colonization, which is accompanied by a zone of depletion of iron and transportation of iron compounds to the mineral surface. It is suggested that an iron-scytonemin complex could feature in this survival strategy and facilitate the movement of iron through the rock. Calculations were carried out on several hypothetical iron-scytonemin complexes to evaluate the most stable structure energetically and examine the effect of the complexation of the biomolecule upon the electronic absorption characteristics of the radiation-protectant species. The implications for extraterrestrial planetary detection and analytical monitoring of an iron-scytonemin complex are assessed.
蓝细菌菌落产生辐射保护生物分子脱镁叶绿素作为其在热沙漠和冷沙漠等环境胁迫条件下生存的应对策略的一部分。这些菌落经常将砂岩用作地下殖民的宿主基质，同时伴随着铁的耗尽区和铁化合物向矿物表面的运输。有人提出，铁-脱镁叶绿素复合物可能是这种生存策略的特征，并有助于铁在岩石中的移动。对几个假设的铁-脱镁叶绿素复合物进行了计算，以评估最稳定的结构的能量，并研究生物分子的络合对辐射保护物质的电子吸收特性的影响。评估了外星行星探测和铁-脱镁叶绿素复合物的分析监测的意义。
