"A tiny amoeba has broken a pretty big record. The discoverydescribed in a preprint study on the server bioRxiv and not yet peer-reviewedpushes the boundaries of our understanding of life's limits"
"Much of the existing research into extremophileslife-forms that thrive at extreme temperatures, acidity levels or other environmental conditionshas concentrated on bacteria and archaea that are simpler in their biology, lacking a nucleus or membrane-bound cell organelles. The record holder for withstanding high temperature by any organism is an archaean, Methanopyrus kandleri, which can grow at temperatures of 122 degrees C (nearly 252 degrees F). The most heat-loving bacteria, Geothermobacterium ferrireducens, can grow at temperatures up to 100 degrees C (212 degrees F)."
A newly discovered single-celled eukaryotic amoeba can divide and reproduce at 63 degrees Celsius (145°F), exceeding previous eukaryote temperature records. The organism's growth at this temperature expands known thermal limits for complex, nucleus-containing life. Previous extremophile research focused on simpler bacteria and archaea, some tolerating far higher temperatures (archaean Methanopyrus kandleri up to 122°C; Geothermobacterium ferrireducens up to 100°C). Conventional wisdom had set eukaryote upper limits near 62°C because high heat destabilizes proteins and organelles. The find has implications for understanding life's boundaries on Earth and assessing environments that could support life beyond Earth.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
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