​Bacteria hundreds of millions of years old can still survive in Martian soil ● 15,000-year-old viruses just emerged from Tibetan glaciers ● How a species of octopus managed to develop a shell despite lacking the necessary genes ● What is the ideal age to quit smoking?

Bacteria that are hundreds of millions of years old can still survive in Martian soil

A recent study published in the journal Astrobiology claims that extraterrestrial life may exist even in our own solar system. More precisely, in the Martian soil, and very close to the surface of the planet.

Experts from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, who signed the study, believe that some bacteria could have survived in soil, protected from radiation and low temperatures, for hundreds of millions of years. To reach this conclusion, the researchers recreated the conditions on Mars in the laboratory. They then subjected several types of bacteria to these conditions.

So they discovered that one of them, Deinoccus radiodurans, can survive for an incredibly long time in such conditions. Not only did it withstand a dose of radiation 28,000 times stronger than what would be needed to kill a human, but it turned out that buried just 10 centimeters below the planet’s surface, they could only last 280 million years.

It’s true that the data doesn’t cover at least 2.5 billion years since Mars lost its liquid water, but researchers say the Martian surface has been periodically bombarded by asteroids. Thus, the soil change and heat released by such events would not only allow such bacteria to disperse, but also to survive. As it turns out, all we need to do is drill at least 10 centimeters. We may have some serious surprises. If not, then no.

15,000-year-old viruses have just surfaced from Tibetan glaciers

Speaking of the survival of bacteria and viruses in extreme conditions, a report published in the journal Microbiome reports that dozens of viruses have recently been discovered in the glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau. There are actually 33 types of viruses, and 28 of them are completely unknown.

Their genetic analysis showed that most of them are bacteriophages, meaning they infect bacteria of the type Methylobacterium responsible for the methane cycle in the ice caps. Although the greatest fear is that such viruses could infect humanity and cause a potential pandemic, this is currently not the case.

The greatest danger, according to experts, remains everything connected with global warming, melting of glaciers and emission of methane and carbon into the atmosphere. As for the viruses in question, they can provide information about when they hit the glaciers, but given what is predicted for the climate, we should probably be worried about us, not the viruses. They have already proven that they can survive. you don’t

How a carapace appeared in the octopus species, despite the lack of the necessary genes

Argonauta argo, a species of octopus found in tropical and subtropical waters, is a biological oddity. This is stated in a study published in the journal Genome Biology and Evolution. And that’s because it’s the only octopus species that has evolved the ability to create a shell to protect its eggs.

Even more surprising, an analysis of the octopus genome revealed that the species had lost the genetic code that determines the appearance of the carapace in its distant ancestors or related species. Instead, and this is where it gets interesting, this species has developed a new ability to form a shell.

In fact, its shell has a microstructural profile different from that known in related species and a different pattern of biomineralization. In short, her ancestors had shells and lost the ability to create another. Dissatisfied with the situation, the Argonaut Argo invented a new way to take possession of it. Evolution!

What is the ideal age to quit smoking?

Well, ideally you should never start, but if you did, it would be wise to stop before you are 35 years old. So claim some researchers from the University of California in San Diego, who began to study mortality among smokers by age group.

Thus, it turned out that people who quit smoking before the age of 35 have the same mortality rate as those who have never smoked. Well, it’s like never smoking in your life. If you put it off until age 44 instead, you’re 21% more likely to wake up dead than a non-smoker. The last category: those who quit smoking between the ages of 45 and 54 have a 47% higher death rate than those who have never smoked.

What happens to people who continue to smoke even after 54 years, we are not told from where we can do it, from here… Lord, have mercy. The study, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, included more than 550,000 people between the ages of 25 and 84 and lasted for at least nine years. During this period, approximately 75,000 people died among the protestors.

Even if there are statistical differences between certain ethnic groups, it can be concluded that, regardless of ethnicity or social category, quitting smoking significantly reduces the risks of premature death, which is not new, but worth noting.

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