Eugena mutabilis: Difference between revisions

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1.Euglena is a genus of unicellular flagellate protists. Species of Euglena are typically found in fresh and salt waters. They are often abundant in inland waters, where they may grow in enough numbers to color the surface of ponds and ditches green, for example E. viridis or even red, such as E. sanguinea.
1.Euglena is a genus of unicellular flagellate protists. Species of Euglena are typically found in fresh and salt waters. They are often abundant in inland waters, where they may grow in enough numbers to color the surface of ponds and ditches green, for example E. viridis or even red, such as E. sanguinea.


Most species of Euglena have photosynthesizing chloroplasts within the body of the cell, which enable them to feed by autotrophy, like plants. However, they can also take nourishment heterotrophically, like animals. Since Euglena have features of both animals and plants, early taxonomists, working within the Linnaean two-kingdom system of biological classification, found them difficult to classify.[3][4] Indeed, it was the question of where to put such "unclassifiable" creatures that prompted Ernst Haeckel to add a third kingdom to the Animale and Vegetabile of Linnaeus: the KingdomProtista.[5] Also, After examining the slime under a microscope, the researchers identified it as Euglena mutabilis, a protozoan which has the remarkable ability of being able to survive in the toxic waters of the Berkeley Pit by altering its local environment to something more hospitable. Through photosynthesis, it increases the oxygen level in the water, which causes dissolved metals to oxidize and precipitate out. In addition, it pulls iron out of the water and sequesters it inside of itself. This makes it a classic example of an extremophile. Grant Mitman believes that the best way to clean up the Pit is to use the algae that already live there. E. Mutabilis, for one, tends to grow in clumps. These clumps clean up their neighborhoods enough for other extremophiles to move in. These organisms would collect the metals within their own cells, and upon dying they would sink to the bottom and drag the metals with them. To Mitman, it’s all a matter of finding the right mix of extremophiles for a self-sustaining algal colony. Once the right mix is found, there are many other mine-contaminated waters awaiting treatment that could use a similar biology-based cleanup.
Most species of Euglena have photosynthesizing chloroplasts within the body of the cell, which enable them to feed by autotrophy. However, they can also take nourishment heterotrophically.
With metals concentrated at the bottom, and cleaner water at the top, the Pit could conceivably be reopened. The bottom sludge could be collected and processed for its ever-more-valuable metal content, and the water could be used for industry or agriculture. While it might not be safe to drink, the water could still be worth a quarter million dollars a year in a water-hungry West. In the meantime, the Pit has become a popular tourist attraction. There's a small museum and gift shop located well above the water level. A number of National Historic Landmarks related to mining are in the area, which has prompted some people to call for the creation of a National Park centered on the Pit. With luck, what was once the Richest Hill in the World could eventually provide riches of a different sort. [[#References | [1]]]
Euglena mutabilis,is a protozoan which has the remarkable ability of being able to survive in the toxic waters of the Berkeley Pit by changing its local environment to something more suitable. By means of photosynthesis, it increases the oxygen level in the water, which causes dissolved metals to oxidize and precipitate out. Furthermore, it pulls iron out of the water and channels it inside of itself, thus, an extremophile. E. Mutabilis, for one, tends to grow in clumps, and these clumps clean up their surroundings enough for other extremophiles to move live in. These organisms would collect the metals within their own cells, and upon dying they would sink to the bottom and drag the metals with them.


==Structure, Metabolism, and Life Cycle==
==Structure, Metabolism, and Life Cycle==

Revision as of 01:07, 22 July 2013

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Classification

Eukaryota/Excavata/Discoba;Euglenozoa; Euglenoidea; Euglenales; Euglenaceae; Euglena mutabilis [Others may be used. Use NCBI link to find]

Euglena mutabilis

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Description and Significance

1.Euglena is a genus of unicellular flagellate protists. Species of Euglena are typically found in fresh and salt waters. They are often abundant in inland waters, where they may grow in enough numbers to color the surface of ponds and ditches green, for example E. viridis or even red, such as E. sanguinea.

Most species of Euglena have photosynthesizing chloroplasts within the body of the cell, which enable them to feed by autotrophy. However, they can also take nourishment heterotrophically. Euglena mutabilis,is a protozoan which has the remarkable ability of being able to survive in the toxic waters of the Berkeley Pit by changing its local environment to something more suitable. By means of photosynthesis, it increases the oxygen level in the water, which causes dissolved metals to oxidize and precipitate out. Furthermore, it pulls iron out of the water and channels it inside of itself, thus, an extremophile. E. Mutabilis, for one, tends to grow in clumps, and these clumps clean up their surroundings enough for other extremophiles to move live in. These organisms would collect the metals within their own cells, and upon dying they would sink to the bottom and drag the metals with them.

Structure, Metabolism, and Life Cycle

Interesting features of its structure; how it gains energy (how it replicates, if virus); what important molecules it produces (if any), does it have an interesting life cycle?

Ecology and Pathogenesis

Natural habitat (soil, water, commensal of humans or animals?)
If relevant, how does this organism cause disease? Human, animal, or plant hosts? Important virulence factors, as well as patient symptoms.

References

[1] EXAMPLE ONLY. REPLACE WITH YOUR REFERENCES. Takai, K., Sugai, A., Itoh, T., and Horikoshi, K. 2000. "Palaeococcus ferrophilus gen. nov., sp. nov., a barophilic, hyperthermophilic archaeon from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent chimney". International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. 50: 489-500. http://ijs.sgmjournals.org/cgi/reprint/50/2/489

Author

Page authored by _____, student of Mandy Brosnahan, Instructor at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, MICB 3301/3303: Biology of Microorganisms.

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