Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Science
Related: About this forumNew type of photosynthesis discovered
Date:
June 14, 2018
Source:
Imperial College London
The discovery changes our understanding of the basic mechanism of photosynthesis and should rewrite the textbooks.
It will also tailor the way we hunt for alien life and provide insights into how we could engineer more efficient crops that take advantage of longer wavelengths of light.
The discovery, published today in Science, was led by Imperial College London, supported by the BBSRC, and involved groups from the ANU in Canberra, the CNRS in Paris and Saclay and the CNR in Milan.
The vast majority of life on Earth uses visible red light in the process of photosynthesis, but the new type uses near-infrared light instead. It was detected in a wide range of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) when they grow in near-infrared light, found in shaded conditions like bacterial mats in Yellowstone and in beach rock in Australia.
More:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180614213608.htm
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
3 replies, 1025 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (11)
ReplyReply to this post
3 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
New type of photosynthesis discovered (Original Post)
Judi Lynn
Jun 2018
OP
PoindexterOglethorpe
(25,895 posts)1. Oh, my.
This also opens the door to other kinds of life on other planets, I would think.
My son, the astronomer (he's in grad school right now) is researching exo-planets, and even though he's not doing the research that's looking for life, we do have conversations on this topic.
Igel
(35,356 posts)3. So perhaps life on planets around stars with the radiation spectrum shifted into the red.
Red dwarves and giants, for instance.
However, my first thought was, "Maybe they can find the genes and modify Augustine grass to grow better in the shade now."
CentralMass
(15,265 posts)2. Another great science article. Thank you for posting it.