Buried Alive: Microbes from Ancient Halite

Abstract

Halite is one of the most extreme environments to support life. From the drought of the Atacama Desert to salt deposits up to Permian in age and 2000 meters in burial depth, live microbes have been found. Because halite is geologically stable and impermeable to ground water, the microbes allegedly have a syndepositional origin, making them the oldest organisms known to live on Earth. Recently, our understanding of the microbial diversity inside halite has broadened, and the first genome sequences of ancient halite-buried microbes are now available. The secrets behind prolonged survival in salt are also starting to be revealed.

Keywords: Halobacterium; Halococcus; ancient; archaea; halite; halophile.