干旱区生态环境知识资源中心

Some microorganisms have adapted to extreme environments such as those of the Antarctica, forming communities within rocks. A reliable tool for exploring these live, mummified and fossilised Antarctic microorganisms in the rock habitat combines several microscopy and microanalytical approaches including scanning electron microscopy with back scattered electron imaging (SEM-BSE), low temperature scanning electron microscopy (LTSEM), confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM) and the microanalytical system X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). These methods have allowed the simultaneous characterisation of these microorganisms, their habitats and the relationships between them. Features common to live endolithic Antarctic ecosystems are a high diversity of microorganisms and heterogeneity in their distribution. Interactions between microorganisms and the lithic substrate such as biomobilisation and biomineralisation processes have also been described. Moreover, the presence of mineralised microorganisms in rocks from Antarctica has been demonstrated. The integration of all the information generated by this type of correlative study provides deep insight into the life cycle of Antarctic endolithic microorganisms.