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New Amoeba Species Thrives in Extreme Heat
Confirmed
In Short: The fire amoeba can enter a dormant state and survive up to 70°C, demonstrating an unprecedented ability to withstand extreme heat.
A newly discovered species of amoeba, Incendiamoeba cascadensis, has shattered the heat tolerance record for eukaryotes, thriving in temperatures up to 145°F (63°C), researchers report in Cell.
The fire amoeba was found in the heated waters of California’s Lassen Volcanic National Park. It can grow at 63°C (145°F), a temperature fatal to all other known eukaryotes.
Beryl Rappaport, a PhD student in Angela Oliverio’s lab at Syracuse University, says the team initially set up cultures at 57°C, the highest temperature previously described for an amoeba.
After observing an amoeba growing at 57°C that looked different from the previous record holder, Echinamoeba thermarum, the team increased the temperature.
Oliverio notes that while the ability to survive extreme heat has been less studied in eukaryotes, the discovery of Incendiamoeba cascadensis suggests there may be more heat-tolerant eukaryotes yet to be discovered.
What this adds
The amoeba's genome shows adaptations that help it maintain protein and membrane stability at higher temperatures.
The researchers named the amoeba Incendiamoeba cascadensis, meaning “fire amoeba from the Cascades,” after the volcanic mountains where it was discovered.
Background
The discovery was made in the heated waters of California’s Lassen Volcanic National Park, where the amoeba was observed thriving in conditions previously thought too extreme for complex life.
A newly discovered amoeba, named Incendiamoeba cascadensis, has shattered the heat tolerance record for eukaryotes, surviving temperatures up to 145°F (63°C).
What's confirmed
- A newly discovered species of amoeba, Incendiamoeba cascadensis, has shattered the heat tolerance record for eukaryotes, thriving in temperatures up to 145°F (63°C), researchers report in Cell.
- The fire amoeba was found in the heated waters of California’s Lassen Volcanic National Park. It can grow at 63°C (145°F), a temperature fatal to all other known eukaryotes.
- Beryl Rappaport, a PhD student in Angela Oliverio’s lab at Syracuse University, says the team initially set up cultures at 57°C, the highest temperature previously described for an amoeba.
- After observing an amoeba growing at 57°C that looked different from the previous record holder, Echinamoeba thermarum, the team increased the temperature.
- Oliverio notes that while the ability to survive extreme heat has been less studied in eukaryotes, the discovery of Incendiamoeba cascadensis suggests there may be more heat-tolerant eukaryotes yet to be discovered.
What's still developing
- When they compared the genome of the new species to those of other amoebas, they observed that the fire amoeba had ways of keeping its proteins and membranes stable at higher temperatures.
- And now that the fire amoeba has been documented, she thinks it's just the start.
- "There's a very deep curiosity and desire to understand life at its limits and at its most extreme," she says.
- The newfound microbe can live and grow in temperatures up to 145 ° Fahrenheit A single-celled blob living in a California hot spring has smashed a heat tolerance record for an entire domain of life.
- Little was known about the genetic adaptations of microbial eukaryotes that live in extreme environments.
- This resilient amoeba could even survive up to 70° C by entering a dormant state.