The search for life on the edges (frontiers) of the global biosphere bridges earth-bound biology and exobiology. This communication reviews recent microbiological studies on selected “frontiers”, i.e., deep-sea, deep subsurface, and Antarctica. Deep-sea is characterized as the aphotic (non-photosynthetic) habitat, and the primary production is mostly due to the chemosynthetic autotrophy at the hydrothermal vents and methane-rich seeps. Formation of the chemosynthesis-dependent animal communities in the deep leads to the idea that such communities may be found in the “ocean” of the Jovian satellite, Europa. An anoxic (no-O₂), as well as aphotic, condition is characteristic of the deep subsurface biosphere. Microorganisms in the deep subsurface biosphere exploit every available oxidant for anaerobic respiration. Sulfate, nitrate, iron (III) and CO₂ are the representative oxidants in the deep subsurface. Below the 3000 m-thick glacier on Antarctica, >70 lakes having liquid water are entombed. One of such sub-glacial lakes, Lake Vostok, has been a target of “life in extreme environments” and is about to be drill-penetrated for microbiological studies. These biospheric frontiers will provide new knowledge about the diversity and the potential of life on Earth and facilitate the capability of astrobiologial exploration.

抄録全体を表示