Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines

The availability of liquid water is a prerequisite for all lifeforms on Earth. In hyperarid subzero environments like the Dry Valleys in Antarctica or the near-subsurface of Mars liquid water might be provided temporarily by hygroscopic substances that absorb water from the atmosphere and lower the...

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Autores principales:	Jacob Heinz, Vita Rambags, Dirk Schulze-Makuch
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	Mars brines salts microorganisms halotolerance yeast Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/05ab8bc13a254357a146ff034e2af5af
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:05ab8bc13a254357a146ff034e2af5af2021-11-25T18:11:04ZPhysicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines10.3390/life111111942075-1729https://doaj.org/article/05ab8bc13a254357a146ff034e2af5af2021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/11/11/1194https://doaj.org/toc/2075-1729The availability of liquid water is a prerequisite for all lifeforms on Earth. In hyperarid subzero environments like the Dry Valleys in Antarctica or the near-subsurface of Mars liquid water might be provided temporarily by hygroscopic substances that absorb water from the atmosphere and lower the freezing point of water. To evaluate the potential of hygroscopic compounds to serve as a habitat, it is necessary to explore the microbial tolerances towards these substances and their life-limiting properties. Here we present a study investigating the tolerances of the halotolerant yeast <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> to various solutes. Growth experiments were conducted via counting colony forming units (CFUs) after inoculation of a liquid growth medium containing a specific solute concentration. The lowest water activities (a<sub>w</sub>) enabling growth were determined to be ~0.83 in glycerol and fructose-rich media. For all other solutes the growth-enabling a<sub>w</sub> was higher, due to additional stress factors such as chaotropicity and ionic strength. Additionally, we found that the solute tolerances of <i>D. hansenii</i> correlate with both the eutectic freezing point depressions and the deliquescence relative humidities of the respective solutes. Our findings strongly impact our understanding of the habitability of solute-rich low a<sub>w</sub> environments on Earth and beyond.Jacob HeinzVita RambagsDirk Schulze-MakuchMDPI AGarticleMarsbrinessaltsmicroorganismshalotoleranceyeastScienceQENLife, Vol 11, Iss 1194, p 1194 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Mars brines salts microorganisms halotolerance yeast Science Q
spellingShingle	Mars brines salts microorganisms halotolerance yeast Science Q Jacob Heinz Vita Rambags Dirk Schulze-Makuch Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines
description	The availability of liquid water is a prerequisite for all lifeforms on Earth. In hyperarid subzero environments like the Dry Valleys in Antarctica or the near-subsurface of Mars liquid water might be provided temporarily by hygroscopic substances that absorb water from the atmosphere and lower the freezing point of water. To evaluate the potential of hygroscopic compounds to serve as a habitat, it is necessary to explore the microbial tolerances towards these substances and their life-limiting properties. Here we present a study investigating the tolerances of the halotolerant yeast <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> to various solutes. Growth experiments were conducted via counting colony forming units (CFUs) after inoculation of a liquid growth medium containing a specific solute concentration. The lowest water activities (a<sub>w</sub>) enabling growth were determined to be ~0.83 in glycerol and fructose-rich media. For all other solutes the growth-enabling a<sub>w</sub> was higher, due to additional stress factors such as chaotropicity and ionic strength. Additionally, we found that the solute tolerances of <i>D. hansenii</i> correlate with both the eutectic freezing point depressions and the deliquescence relative humidities of the respective solutes. Our findings strongly impact our understanding of the habitability of solute-rich low a<sub>w</sub> environments on Earth and beyond.
format	article
author	Jacob Heinz Vita Rambags Dirk Schulze-Makuch
author_facet	Jacob Heinz Vita Rambags Dirk Schulze-Makuch
author_sort	Jacob Heinz
title	Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines
title_short	Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines
title_full	Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines
title_fullStr	Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines
title_full_unstemmed	Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines
title_sort	physicochemical parameters limiting growth of <i>debaryomyces hansenii</i> in solutions of hygroscopic compounds and their effects on the habitability of martian brines
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/05ab8bc13a254357a146ff034e2af5af
work_keys_str_mv	AT jacobheinz physicochemicalparameterslimitinggrowthofidebaryomyceshanseniiiinsolutionsofhygroscopiccompoundsandtheireffectsonthehabitabilityofmartianbrines AT vitarambags physicochemicalparameterslimitinggrowthofidebaryomyceshanseniiiinsolutionsofhygroscopiccompoundsandtheireffectsonthehabitabilityofmartianbrines AT dirkschulzemakuch physicochemicalparameterslimitinggrowthofidebaryomyceshanseniiiinsolutionsofhygroscopiccompoundsandtheireffectsonthehabitabilityofmartianbrines
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Physicochemical Parameters Limiting Growth of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> in Solutions of Hygroscopic Compounds and Their Effects on the Habitability of Martian Brines

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