Pim told me that he thinks it's "cool" that "the
intelligent designer is a bacterium."
I think it's cool that a bacterium also appears
to be "the intelligent designer" of "climate change".
Hahahahaha ~ Janice
Bacterial Gene May Affect Climate And Weather
Science Daily ^ | 2-17-2007 | University Of Queensland
Posted on 02/17/2007 2:47:13 PM EST by blam
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1786628/posts
Science Daily A University of Queensland
microbiologist is part of an international team
that has identified a bacterial gene that may affect climate and weather.
Dr Phil Bond, from UQ's Advanced Wastewater
Management Centre, and his former colleagues at
the University of East Anglia in England, have
found how a particular type of marine bacteria –
Marinomonas – generates a compound that is a key
component in global sulfur and carbon cycles.
“Marine algae can produce large amounts of a
compound (dimethylsulfoniopropionate or DMSP)
that when broken down by bacteria produces
dimethyl sulfide (DMS),” Dr Bond said.
“DMS then enters the atmosphere and is thought to
contribute to condensation of water vapour and cloud formation.
“These algae can be found in such large numbers
in the world's oceans that the amount of DMS
released can increase the reflection of sunlight
by clouds which may contribute to a reduction in global temperature.
“The bacteria are opportunists here, that are
likely getting something out of the DMSP
degradation which causes the release of DMS. It
is this process that also gives the sea its smell.”
Dr Bond isolated the bacterium Marinomonas from
the east coast of the UK and the research team
was able to identify the gene that is responsible
for the bacteria being able to change DMSP to DMS.
Dr Bond said while the research unlocked a vital
part of the microbial puzzle, still more work needed to be done.
“By finding how this process works, as we have
done, it opens the door to further research into
how these, and other similar bacteria, affect the
global flux of sulfur and carbon and their impact
on the climate,” Dr Bond said.
“This research really does show how integral
something as simple as microbial interactions may
be to our entire environment.”
The research was recently published in Science,
one the world's top scientific journals.
~ Janice
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Received on Thu Sep 13 11:29:12 2007
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