Scientists Find Tiny Microbes Producing Oxygen Deep Inside Ocean With No Sunlight

For most life forms to exist on Earth, oxygen is considered one of the primary ingredients. To produce oxygen, organisms require sunlight. But do we? Turns out, scientists have noted the first instance of an ocean microbe creating oxygen without any sunlight.

The groundbreaking assessment could change our understanding of biological processes. The microbe, called Nitrosopumilus maritimus, along with its cousins called ammonia oxidising archaea (AOA) is not only able to survive in the dark but also manage to produce oxygen on their own.

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How do microbes produce oxygen?

The microbes use a biological process that has never been seen before. Scientists have known for long that microbes can survive in environments that lack oxygen, but have never seen them producing their own oxygen.

When moved to lab conditions from the ocean, the micro-organisms were able to produce their own sunlight without help from any sunlight to create nitrite, with nitrogen gas (dinitrogen) as a by-product.

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Scientists speculate that microbes are able to convert ammonia into nitrite in a low-oxygen environment. To achieve this, they're required to create their own oxygen.

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Their process effectively removed bio-available nitrogen from the marine environment... something scientists hadn't ever imagined. The study's authors believe this could have "far-reaching" consequences for how humans understand the marine nitrogen cycle.

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The study was published in Science and its researchers believe more investigation is needed to understand how miniscule marine life survives deep in the ocean where oxygen is extremely scarce. Not only are they producing their own oxygen, but also changing our understanding of how life can create life-supporting oxygen in extreme environments.

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What do you think about this groundbreaking discovery? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.

References

Kraft, B., Jehmlich, N., Larsen, M., Bristow, L. A., K?nneke, M., Thamdrup, B., & Canfield, D. E. (2022). Oxygen and nitrogen production by an ammonia-oxidizing archaeon. Science, 375(6576), 97¨C100.