Temperature Sensitivity of Halomonas hydrothermalis

What is it about?

In this paper, iron availability and atmospheric composition are shown to determine susceptibility of a marine bacterium, Halomonas hydrothermalis, to suboptimal and elevated temperature and salinity by impacting rates of cell division (but not viability). In particular, iron starvation combined with microaerobic conditions is found to result in reduced sensitivity to temperature across the 13°C range tested.

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Why is it important?

Compounded impacts of iron availability and atmospheric gas composition on microbial temperature and salt sensitivities have not been previously reported, despite observations that nutrient-starved cells frequently exhibit increased tolerance of heat, UV-B radiation, antibiotics, and oxidative stress. Our results suggest that the interplay between resource availability and stress tolerance plays an important role in determining biological permissiveness for extreme environments.