12 ms·

Chernobyl Fungus Feeds On Radiation (2007)

99 points by skennedy 13y ago

andrelaszlo 13y ago
Older news: "Exotic Underground Bacteria Thrive On Radiation Rather Than Sunlight" http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20060919234956data_trunc_sys.shtml http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20060919234956data_trunc_sy...
Zikes 13y ago
(2007) Very interesting, though. Just not very new.
- vanderZwan 13y ago
  Yes, I remembered hearing about it back then. But this does make me wonder if anything new has been found out about how it works. A quick wikipedia/google scholar suggests it hasn't, sadly. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiotrophic_fungus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiotrophic_fungus
ben1040 13y ago
This reminds me of the fungus you see growing on the sides of distillery facilities (if you ever go through bourbon country in Kentucky, all the whisky aging warehouses are covered in the stuff). Instead of radiation, they thrive on ethanol. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baudoinia_compniacensis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baudoinia_compniacensis
- sp332 13y ago
  If you're bored and want a story about it: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/05/ff_angelsshare/all/1 http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/05/ff_angelsshare/all/1
xacaxulu 13y ago
I hope this could be cultivated and embedded around sites in Japan.
civilian 13y ago
So, radiation is a big risk factor in sending astronauts to Mars and around the solar system. What if we could genetically engineer ourselves to use this melanin pathway for ourselves? We wouldn't use energy from radiation in the fungi-melanin pathway (although we could), but it could be good to make our bodies recognize that a radiation storm is happening and that could trigger biochemical changes in our bodies. Either to become more radiation proof (hide yo' DNA in chromatin) or take some radiation-resilient actions (heavily increase the reproduction of cells in our gut lining). This isn't a very realistic idea, just a sci-fi thing. We have a hundred years of ethics and technology to accomplish before this would be realistic.
- enraged_camel 13y ago
  >>So, radiation is a big risk factor in sending astronauts to Mars and around the solar system. >>What if we could genetically engineer ourselves to use this melanin pathway for ourselves? I had a friend in high school who was really good at biology and wanted to pursue a career in genetics. I asked him why and he said he wanted to design humans that have tiger claws. I think his dream is more realistic than what you suggest. :)
  - Houshalter 13y ago
    We already have melanin in our skin to block radiation though, don't we?
    - waps 13y ago
      We have melanin in our skin to block radiation from the sun. Now there's a difference. The sun is emitting thermal radiation of about a million degrees celcius. The energy profile of it's radiation is very well studied. It's basically random radiation with every individual photon being in a defined (and quite low) energy interval. Radiation in space is totally random over the entire spectrum. There aren't many events at all (compared to the sun's radiation you could be forgiven for claiming there isn't any radiation in space at all, so few photons), but the events that do happen have a totally random energy distribution. Meaning most of the rays have enough energy to knock 2 or 3 molecules from the front of your finger into your brain. Or (a very tiny) part of the casing of the ship into deep into your body. If you measure space radiation with your sensor pointed down towards this massive rock we're living on, using the entire mass of the planet to block the radiation, the meter does not go down to zero (even when you eliminate the radiation produced by the planet itself). Metals have a bit of an advantage blocking radiation because they have collective electron orbitals. If radiation impacts an electron inside a metal structure, it's going to throw it centimeters, meters away, maybe even kilometers. But here's the difference : that energy can be dissipated all around the structure. In other words, just because an electron gets an energy boost and gets thrown all around the room does not mean it has left it's orbital at all, and so it should remain inside the metal plate. If it does, the radiation is blocked. It's a sort of "structural integrity" field : the energy delivered does not have to beat the magnetic field of a single atom, but the magnetic field of the entire lattice. Unfortunately, on a per-atom basis, metal magnetic fields are on the very low side (mostly). Ideally you'd use compressed plasma clouds to block radiation. But the energy required for maintaining that is rather enormous. But it would block pretty much all radiation (this is the reason the early universe, despite producing more photons in essentially empty space than the fusion reaction in the sun does today, was "completely dark". Those photons couldn't travel, so they'd never hit any sensor) This is the problem with space radiation. Once radiation energy levels go above certain "reasonable" energy levels blocking it becomes a pipe dream.
mileszim 13y ago
This is a very cool fungus, I'm glad this was posted! The trickery of its survival comes from its use of melanin, specifically pheomelanin. Basically what happens is when ionizing radiation strikes pheomelanin, an incident electron is generated because of something known as the Compton effect (think photoelectric effect but at really high energy). Somehow, pheomelanin is able to strip down the energy of the electron until it is no longer capable of acting as a free radical and destroying surrounding matter. Unfortunately, that mechanism is still unknown, hopefully with the development of higher resolution microscopes we can get a more thorough understanding of the molecular structure.
ChuckMcM 13y ago
So following up later papers that cite the original [1] doesn't seem like this has gone very far. A number of papers collecting extremofile exemplars, and a few thinking about energy sources. But nothing on 'space food', 'radioactive remediation', or analysis of the energy source in humans. Sigh. [1] http://scholar.google.com/scholar?cites=14704617567455474393&as_sdt=2005&sciodt=0,5&hl=en http://scholar.google.com/scholar?cites=14704617567455474393...
- mileszim 13y ago
  The problem is that the active molecule itself has a complex structure, and it is very hard to get a high-resolution image of even one of its structures (melanin can be folded in lots of ways). There's some potential for better imaging with fairly recent discoveries in partial-wavelength resolution microscopy using weak-measurement, but it's still a new technology. Melanin's mechanism for absorbing ionizing radiation, if understood, will definitely open up major applications for a perfected, synthesized solution.
Houshalter 13y ago
This isn't really "new" but still pretty interesting. EDIT: Title changed.
TrainedMonkey 13y ago
I am pretty sure I've heard something about Japanese wanting to try radiation "eating" fungi at Chernobyl ago in order to decontaminate the area almost a decade ago.
- alephnil 13y ago
  The fungi can't break down radiation, no known method can do that(1), and probably not even collect it. The amount of radioactivity is unchanged regardless of the presence of these fungi. They only use the radiation that is there as an energy source. (1) Bombarding with neutrons or high energy charged particles may change the amount of radioactivity. Also, positron-emitting nucleotides can have slightly faster halflife at very low temperatures. None of these methods are available for the fungi.
  - mileszim 13y ago
    Melanin has about a 30% absorption rate of ionizing radiation in the gamma spectrum, and remains stable (not oxidized in the traditional rate) while producing a current. The fungus is able to produce an acidic fuel source from the current that it feeds off of. The fungus is definitely breaking down radiation, incredibly, but it's mechanism is very poorly understood.
    - gus_massa 13y ago
      The fungus is (apparently) absorbing the radiation and using it as an energy source. But it is not making the radioactive atoms decay faster. So the time we have to wait until the area is safe and has a low radioactivity level doesn’t change.
      - Tharkun 13y ago
        True, but a layer of fungus would presumably act as an insulator, as it's absorbing part of the radiation? Perhaps it would be easier/cheaper/prettier to cover the sarcophagus in the fungus than in more concrete? Depending, of course, on a) how much it actually absorbs and b) how thick you can pile the stuff?
kevinchen 13y ago
This is almost out of a Michael Crichton book. So close. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Andromeda_Strain http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Andromeda_Strain
ealloc 13y ago
Interesting. Only 2 photosynthetic molecules are known so far in all branches of life, chlorophyll and rhodopsin, so the existence of another photosynthetic pathway is pretty surprising! I hope it's not another case of hype followed by debunking like for "arsenic dna" or "antideluvian dna". The study seems to be done properly though, and hints at a possible mechanism, so maybe. I'd need a couple follow up studies of the mechanism to be convinced!
evolve2k 13y ago
So the fungi essentially absorbing some of the radiation and transforming it. Does this mean that this is positively affecting the radioactive halife of the area because the fungi are essentially living off the excesses radiation present and will help contribute to reduce the radiation levels over time?
- VLM 13y ago
  No. Just like shining a flashlight on a traditional plant doesn't make the batteries wear out any quicker or slower. However, every gamma it adsorbs, is, well, adsorbed. Its probably not a very good shield compared to sandwiches of iron and water, but its probably better than empty air. Perhaps in the future you could grow a reactor core using a tree. This would make a good minecraft mod. If it were very aggressive about growth, maybe it would physically block rainwater from hitting the contaminants and running off contaminating downstream. Rainwater hitting harmless fungus and flowing away would help, a little.
  - evolve2k 13y ago
    I can't quite tell if you are trolling me, but I'll assume for the best as I am truly curious on this. To take your analogy the torch will loose battery at the same rate but with the plants leaves receiving more light it would be less light that goes in the face of the person standing behind the plant. Do the plants absorbing radiation lead to less radiation being around to be absorbed by humans and animals instead? Maybe I am fundamentally misunderstanding something here.
    - VLM 13y ago
      radiation adsorption occurs at an atomic level too fast for anything chemical to happen WRT the adsorption, so a peculiar arrangement of atoms can't have any effect on overall shielding levels other than bulk density (like how much "stuff per inch" depends on what stuff is). The hack of the system is the very peculiar arrangement of atoms for this specific fungi can make productive use of the gamma energy which most living things can't do. From a nuclear standpoint long after the gamma is ancient history the chemistry can get started (theres a big timescale mismatch). A plain old mushroom or any ole biomass will block the gammas as effectively as this one. Of course a plain old mushroom or biomass can't live in that location; nothing to eat. It would be like building a firewall that acts like any other firewall, except under DDOS conditions it uses a whole network of diodes and stuff to store up the electrical energy of each attack packet. This doesn't work with routers because they take maybe "hundreds of watts" to run but the received laser power might only be "hundredths of watts". For a fungi that grows slow enough and has no competition in its niche, gammas are apparently enough.
GuerraEarth 13y ago
Funghi absorb radionuclides strongly. The reindeer and other grazers who eat lichen, etc. are all highly contaminated now. Look up radiotrophic funghi.
punkghetto 13y ago
Would be awesome if this could be developed as a method to decontaminate or stabilize areas affected by nuclear accidents.
plu420 13y ago
http://fukushima-diary.com/2013/06/black-substance-170000-cpm-possibly-130000140000-cpm-from-%CE%B2/?/ http://fukushima-diary.com/2013/06/black-substance-170000-cp... A black organism that bioaccumulates radionuclides has being known of in Japan for a while. I wouldn't go so far as to say this is a good or bad thing before we've studied this radioactive monster; considering how very hot it is I'll leave the studying to up someone else...
everyone 13y ago
Amazing, I guess its easy forget life on earth is billions of years old and extends deep into the planets crust. It has adapted to some completely different environments than what we normally associate with life.
DonGateley 13y ago
"Just as the pigment chlorophyll converts sunlight into chemical energy that allows green plants to live and grow, our research suggests that melanin can use a different portion of the electromagnetic spectrum - ionizing radiation - to benefit the fungi containing it," One problem with that. Ionizing radiation is not on the electromagnetic spectrum. It's particles with rest mass.
- TheEzEzz 13y ago
  According to the infallible Wikipedia ionizing radiation can refer to either electromagnetic radiation or massive particles. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation
  - DonGateley 13y ago
    I should have looked that up, huh? :-)

99 points by skennedy 13y ago

Older news: "Exotic Underground Bacteria Thrive On Radiation Rather Than Sunlight" http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20060919234956data_trunc_sys.shtml http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20060919234956data_trunc_sy...

Zikes 13y ago

(2007) Very interesting, though. Just not very new.

vanderZwan 13y ago
Yes, I remembered hearing about it back then. But this does make me wonder if anything new has been found out about how it works. A quick wikipedia/google scholar suggests it hasn't, sadly. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiotrophic_fungus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiotrophic_fungus

ben1040 13y ago

This reminds me of the fungus you see growing on the sides of distillery facilities (if you ever go through bourbon country in Kentucky, all the whisky aging warehouses are covered in the stuff). Instead of radiation, they thrive on ethanol. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baudoinia_compniacensis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baudoinia_compniacensis

sp332 13y ago
If you're bored and want a story about it: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/05/ff_angelsshare/all/1 http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/05/ff_angelsshare/all/1

xacaxulu 13y ago

I hope this could be cultivated and embedded around sites in Japan.

civilian 13y ago

So, radiation is a big risk factor in sending astronauts to Mars and around the solar system. What if we could genetically engineer ourselves to use this melanin pathway for ourselves? We wouldn't use energy from radiation in the fungi-melanin pathway (although we could), but it could be good to make our bodies recognize that a radiation storm is happening and that could trigger biochemical changes in our bodies. Either to become more radiation proof (hide yo' DNA in chromatin) or take some radiation-resilient actions (heavily increase the reproduction of cells in our gut lining). This isn't a very realistic idea, just a sci-fi thing. We have a hundred years of ethics and technology to accomplish before this would be realistic.

enraged_camel 13y ago
>>So, radiation is a big risk factor in sending astronauts to Mars and around the solar system. >>What if we could genetically engineer ourselves to use this melanin pathway for ourselves? I had a friend in high school who was really good at biology and wanted to pursue a career in genetics. I asked him why and he said he wanted to design humans that have tiger claws. I think his dream is more realistic than what you suggest. :)
- Houshalter 13y ago
  We already have melanin in our skin to block radiation though, don't we?
  - waps 13y ago
    We have melanin in our skin to block radiation from the sun. Now there's a difference. The sun is emitting thermal radiation of about a million degrees celcius. The energy profile of it's radiation is very well studied. It's basically random radiation with every individual photon being in a defined (and quite low) energy interval. Radiation in space is totally random over the entire spectrum. There aren't many events at all (compared to the sun's radiation you could be forgiven for claiming there isn't any radiation in space at all, so few photons), but the events that do happen have a totally random energy distribution. Meaning most of the rays have enough energy to knock 2 or 3 molecules from the front of your finger into your brain. Or (a very tiny) part of the casing of the ship into deep into your body. If you measure space radiation with your sensor pointed down towards this massive rock we're living on, using the entire mass of the planet to block the radiation, the meter does not go down to zero (even when you eliminate the radiation produced by the planet itself). Metals have a bit of an advantage blocking radiation because they have collective electron orbitals. If radiation impacts an electron inside a metal structure, it's going to throw it centimeters, meters away, maybe even kilometers. But here's the difference : that energy can be dissipated all around the structure. In other words, just because an electron gets an energy boost and gets thrown all around the room does not mean it has left it's orbital at all, and so it should remain inside the metal plate. If it does, the radiation is blocked. It's a sort of "structural integrity" field : the energy delivered does not have to beat the magnetic field of a single atom, but the magnetic field of the entire lattice. Unfortunately, on a per-atom basis, metal magnetic fields are on the very low side (mostly). Ideally you'd use compressed plasma clouds to block radiation. But the energy required for maintaining that is rather enormous. But it would block pretty much all radiation (this is the reason the early universe, despite producing more photons in essentially empty space than the fusion reaction in the sun does today, was "completely dark". Those photons couldn't travel, so they'd never hit any sensor) This is the problem with space radiation. Once radiation energy levels go above certain "reasonable" energy levels blocking it becomes a pipe dream.

mileszim 13y ago

This is a very cool fungus, I'm glad this was posted! The trickery of its survival comes from its use of melanin, specifically pheomelanin. Basically what happens is when ionizing radiation strikes pheomelanin, an incident electron is generated because of something known as the Compton effect (think photoelectric effect but at really high energy). Somehow, pheomelanin is able to strip down the energy of the electron until it is no longer capable of acting as a free radical and destroying surrounding matter. Unfortunately, that mechanism is still unknown, hopefully with the development of higher resolution microscopes we can get a more thorough understanding of the molecular structure.

ChuckMcM 13y ago

So following up later papers that cite the original [1] doesn't seem like this has gone very far. A number of papers collecting extremofile exemplars, and a few thinking about energy sources. But nothing on 'space food', 'radioactive remediation', or analysis of the energy source in humans. Sigh. [1] http://scholar.google.com/scholar?cites=14704617567455474393&as_sdt=2005&sciodt=0,5&hl=en http://scholar.google.com/scholar?cites=14704617567455474393...

mileszim 13y ago
The problem is that the active molecule itself has a complex structure, and it is very hard to get a high-resolution image of even one of its structures (melanin can be folded in lots of ways). There's some potential for better imaging with fairly recent discoveries in partial-wavelength resolution microscopy using weak-measurement, but it's still a new technology. Melanin's mechanism for absorbing ionizing radiation, if understood, will definitely open up major applications for a perfected, synthesized solution.

Houshalter 13y ago

This isn't really "new" but still pretty interesting. EDIT: Title changed.

TrainedMonkey 13y ago

I am pretty sure I've heard something about Japanese wanting to try radiation "eating" fungi at Chernobyl ago in order to decontaminate the area almost a decade ago.

alephnil 13y ago
The fungi can't break down radiation, no known method can do that(1), and probably not even collect it. The amount of radioactivity is unchanged regardless of the presence of these fungi. They only use the radiation that is there as an energy source. (1) Bombarding with neutrons or high energy charged particles may change the amount of radioactivity. Also, positron-emitting nucleotides can have slightly faster halflife at very low temperatures. None of these methods are available for the fungi.
- mileszim 13y ago
  Melanin has about a 30% absorption rate of ionizing radiation in the gamma spectrum, and remains stable (not oxidized in the traditional rate) while producing a current. The fungus is able to produce an acidic fuel source from the current that it feeds off of. The fungus is definitely breaking down radiation, incredibly, but it's mechanism is very poorly understood.
  - gus_massa 13y ago
    The fungus is (apparently) absorbing the radiation and using it as an energy source. But it is not making the radioactive atoms decay faster. So the time we have to wait until the area is safe and has a low radioactivity level doesn’t change.
    - Tharkun 13y ago
      True, but a layer of fungus would presumably act as an insulator, as it's absorbing part of the radiation? Perhaps it would be easier/cheaper/prettier to cover the sarcophagus in the fungus than in more concrete? Depending, of course, on a) how much it actually absorbs and b) how thick you can pile the stuff?

kevinchen 13y ago

This is almost out of a Michael Crichton book. So close. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Andromeda_Strain http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Andromeda_Strain

ealloc 13y ago

Interesting. Only 2 photosynthetic molecules are known so far in all branches of life, chlorophyll and rhodopsin, so the existence of another photosynthetic pathway is pretty surprising! I hope it's not another case of hype followed by debunking like for "arsenic dna" or "antideluvian dna". The study seems to be done properly though, and hints at a possible mechanism, so maybe. I'd need a couple follow up studies of the mechanism to be convinced!

evolve2k 13y ago

So the fungi essentially absorbing some of the radiation and transforming it. Does this mean that this is positively affecting the radioactive halife of the area because the fungi are essentially living off the excesses radiation present and will help contribute to reduce the radiation levels over time?

VLM 13y ago
No. Just like shining a flashlight on a traditional plant doesn't make the batteries wear out any quicker or slower. However, every gamma it adsorbs, is, well, adsorbed. Its probably not a very good shield compared to sandwiches of iron and water, but its probably better than empty air. Perhaps in the future you could grow a reactor core using a tree. This would make a good minecraft mod. If it were very aggressive about growth, maybe it would physically block rainwater from hitting the contaminants and running off contaminating downstream. Rainwater hitting harmless fungus and flowing away would help, a little.
- evolve2k 13y ago
  I can't quite tell if you are trolling me, but I'll assume for the best as I am truly curious on this. To take your analogy the torch will loose battery at the same rate but with the plants leaves receiving more light it would be less light that goes in the face of the person standing behind the plant. Do the plants absorbing radiation lead to less radiation being around to be absorbed by humans and animals instead? Maybe I am fundamentally misunderstanding something here.
  - VLM 13y ago
    radiation adsorption occurs at an atomic level too fast for anything chemical to happen WRT the adsorption, so a peculiar arrangement of atoms can't have any effect on overall shielding levels other than bulk density (like how much "stuff per inch" depends on what stuff is). The hack of the system is the very peculiar arrangement of atoms for this specific fungi can make productive use of the gamma energy which most living things can't do. From a nuclear standpoint long after the gamma is ancient history the chemistry can get started (theres a big timescale mismatch). A plain old mushroom or any ole biomass will block the gammas as effectively as this one. Of course a plain old mushroom or biomass can't live in that location; nothing to eat. It would be like building a firewall that acts like any other firewall, except under DDOS conditions it uses a whole network of diodes and stuff to store up the electrical energy of each attack packet. This doesn't work with routers because they take maybe "hundreds of watts" to run but the received laser power might only be "hundredths of watts". For a fungi that grows slow enough and has no competition in its niche, gammas are apparently enough.

GuerraEarth 13y ago

Funghi absorb radionuclides strongly. The reindeer and other grazers who eat lichen, etc. are all highly contaminated now. Look up radiotrophic funghi.

punkghetto 13y ago

Would be awesome if this could be developed as a method to decontaminate or stabilize areas affected by nuclear accidents.

plu420 13y ago

http://fukushima-diary.com/2013/06/black-substance-170000-cpm-possibly-130000140000-cpm-from-%CE%B2/?/ http://fukushima-diary.com/2013/06/black-substance-170000-cp... A black organism that bioaccumulates radionuclides has being known of in Japan for a while. I wouldn't go so far as to say this is a good or bad thing before we've studied this radioactive monster; considering how very hot it is I'll leave the studying to up someone else...

everyone 13y ago

Amazing, I guess its easy forget life on earth is billions of years old and extends deep into the planets crust. It has adapted to some completely different environments than what we normally associate with life.

DonGateley 13y ago

"Just as the pigment chlorophyll converts sunlight into chemical energy that allows green plants to live and grow, our research suggests that melanin can use a different portion of the electromagnetic spectrum - ionizing radiation - to benefit the fungi containing it," One problem with that. Ionizing radiation is not on the electromagnetic spectrum. It's particles with rest mass.

TheEzEzz 13y ago
According to the infallible Wikipedia ionizing radiation can refer to either electromagnetic radiation or massive particles. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation
- DonGateley 13y ago
  I should have looked that up, huh? :-)