Microbes at the top of the world

Microbes at the top of the world

Subject: Science and Technology

Section:  Health

Context:

• An article, Genetic analysis of the frozen microbiome at 7,900 metres above sea level on the South Col of Sagarmatha (Mount Everest), by Dr. N.B. Dragone and others in journal  Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research examines the human microbiota on the inhospitable slopes of Mount Everest.

Details of the study:

• They were able to collect microbial communities in sediment samples left by human climbers on the South Col of Mount Everest, 7,900 metres above sea level (msl).
  • The South Col is the ridge which separates Mt. Everest from Lhotse — the fourth highest mountain on earth.
  • The two peaks are only three kilometres apart. At 7,900 msl, the South Col is rather inhospitable — a heat wave in July 2022 led to a record high temperature of minus 1.4 degree Celsius.
  • A few species of moss and a jumping spider that feeds on frozen insects carried by the wind are found there.
• Using sophisticated methods such as 16S and 18S rRNA sequencing, the microbe hunters were able to identify the bacteria and other microorganisms found on the South Col.
  • 16s rRNA is a component of the 30S subunit in prokaryotic ribosomes while 18s rRNA is a component of the 40S subunit in eukaryotic ribosomes.
  • 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequencing is an amplicon sequencing technique used to identify and compare species of bacteria present within a given sample.
  • 16S rRNA gene sequencing is used to study phylogeny and taxonomy of samples from complex microbiomes or environments that are difficult or impossible to study.
• Microbes like modestobacter altitudinis and the fungus, naganishia, which are known to be UV-resistant survivors are found there.

Utilization of microbes:

1. Enzymes, chemicals, and other bioactive molecules
   • Citric acid fungus Aspergillus niger
   • Acetobacter aceti (an acetic acid bacteria)
   • Clostridium butylicum (a butyric acid-producing bacterium)
   • Lactobacillus acidophilus (a bacterium).
   • For the commercial manufacturing of ethanol, yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is utilised.
2. Milk to Curd
   • Lactobacillus and other microorganisms known as lactic acid bacteria (LAB) thrive in milk and convert it to curd.
3. Fermentation
   • Yeast converts sugar into alcohol. Fermentation is the process of converting sugar into alcohol. In 1857, Louis Pasteur discovered fermentation.
   • baker’s yeast is used to ferment the dough required to make bread (Saccharomyces cerevisiae).
4. Fermented Drinks
   • Saccharomyces cerevisiae, often known as brewer’s yeast, is used for fermenting malted cereals and fruit juices to make ethanol for this purpose.
5. Sewage treatment microbes
   • The microorganisms devour the majority of the organic materials in the wastewater as they grow. This greatly reduces the effluent’s BOD (biochemical oxygen demand).
6. Microbes in biogas generation
   • Biogas is a gas combination (predominantly methane) created by microbial activity that can be used as fuel.
   • Methanogens are bacteria that produce Methanobacterium is one such frequent bacterium.
7. Biocontrol agents based on microbes
   • Bacillus thuringiensis is an example of a microbial biocontrol agent that can be introduced to control butterfly caterpillars (often written as Bt).
   • The fungus Trichoderma is being developed as a biological control for the treatment of plant disease.
8. Microbes as biofertilisers
   • Azospirillum, mycorrhiza and Azotobacter can improve the soil’s nitrogen content by fixing atmospheric nitrogen while growing freely in the soil.
   • Many cyanobacteria, including Anabaena, Nostoc, Oscillatona, etc., are autotrophic microbes that can fix atmospheric nitrogen. They are found in both aquatic and terrestrial habitats.
   • Cyanobacteria are a significant biofertilizer in paddy fields.
9. Preservatives

About Mount Everest:

• Named Mount Sagarmatha in Nepal region.
• Nepal’s eminent historian, late Baburam Acharya, gave it the Nepali name, sagarmatha, in the 1960s.
• Kangchenjunga peak:
  • In 1847, Andrew Waugh, British Surveyor General of India, found a peak in the eastern end of the Himalayas which was higher than the Kangchenjunga — considered as the highest peak in the world at that time.
  • His predecessor, Sir George Everest, was interested in high-altitude hills and had deputed Waugh to take charge. In true colonial spirit, Waugh called it the Mount Everest. 
• The Indian mathematician and surveyor, Radhanath Sikdar, was an able mathematician.
• He was the first person to show that Mount Everest (then known as peak XV) was the world’s highest peak.
• George Everest had appointed Sikdar to the post of ‘Computer’ in the Survey of India in 1831.
• In 1852, Sikdar, with the help of a special device, recorded the height of ‘Peak 15’ at 8,839 metres. However, it was officially announced in March 1856.