Deinococcus radiodurans is a Guinness World Record winning, polyextremophile, which was discovered in a radiation-sterilized can of corn beef in 1956 (Radman & Krisko, 2013) (Meet Conan the Bacterium, 1999). The name Deinococcus radiodurans means “strange berry that withstands radiation”, and that name derives from the bacteria’s red, spherical shape (DeWeerdt, 2002). Since the discovery of this strange berry in the fifties, there have been various studies conducted trying to figure the various extreme conditions which the extremophile can survive in, their energy sources, what about their DNA allows them to survive such conditions, and if they can inhabit other planets in our solar system. The Deinococcus can survive many extreme environments such as: without water, without oxygen, extremely high levels of radiation, extreme cold, vacuum, minimal nutrients and dormancy (Meet Conan the Bacterium, 1999) (DeWeerdt, 2002). …show more content…
Despite the radiation completely shattering the Deionococcus’ DNA, the bacteria can repair the damage rapidly by “stitching its fragments back together” (DeWeerdt, 2002). Yet despite Deinococcus’ many extreme conditions, it does not thrive in these conditions, unlike extremophiles that categorize under “one” extreme condition (DeWeerdt, 2002). Their adaptability to various climates makes the bacteria hard to find a c0ncrete home for them; they are seen living in animal dung, sewers, and Antarctic granite (DeWeerdt, 2002) (McDonough, n.d.). Deinococcus radiodurans takes energy from various sources including carbon, like amino acids and other carbohydrates, nicotinic acid, sulfur, manganese nitrogen sources, and peptides (Radman & Krisko,