Are there medical implications of geomicrobiology?

Posted by Dale on Feb 17, 2002 at 09:11
(204.212.212.62)

If microbial life is found on Mars, will it be native to the planet or something carried there from Earth? Either way, will it be safe to return samples of such organisms to Earth? Astrobiology, the search for life elsewhere, says a University of Illinois microbiologist, is making us look a lot closer at microbial life on Earth – how it adapts and its relationship to emerging infectious diseases.

"Every time humans do something to benefit human beings, be it surgery, construction or air-conditioning, we create new opportunities for microorganisms to encounter things they have never encountered before," she said. "So, we as scientists must ask, what are the limits. Can we predict an emerging infectious disease before it happens?

http://www.news.uiuc.edu/scitips/02/0215salyers.html

Bet there are "religious" folks out there that will insist that life on Mars could not possibly have come from Earth because life is everywhere in the universe.


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