NASA: “The golden bacteria growing in a dish are called Deinococcus radiodurans (D. rad).
Universe teeming with life ... get used to it
Probably one of the oldest surviving Earth life forms, D. rad was discovered by accident in the 1950s when scientists investigating food preservation techniques could not easily kill it. D. rad could live on another planet because in Earth labs, D. rad survives extreme levels of radiation, extreme temperatures, dehydration, and exposure to genotoxic chemicals.
Amazingly, D. rad bacteria even have the ability to repair their own DNA, usually within 48 hours. Known as an extremophile, D. rad is of interest to NASA because the resilient bacteria could help human astronauts survive on other worlds. A recent genome map of D. rad's DNA might allow biologists to augment its survival skills with the ability to produce medicine, clean water, and oxygen.
Already D. rad has been genetically engineered to help clean up toxic mercury spills.”
Image credit: Michael Daly, Dept. of Energy lab.
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