抗辐射菌Deinococcus radiodurans的多样性

抗辐射菌Deinococcus radiodurans是一种对电离辐射和其他DNA损伤因子具有极强抵抗能力的细菌,是研究DNA损伤与修复的模式生物。综述了国内外在抗辐射菌研究上取得的最新研究成果,从生存环境、对DNA损伤因子的抗性、抗性机理及其损伤修复关联基因等方面报道了抗辐射菌的多样性,并探讨了该细菌高效正确的DNA损伤修复机理的相关研究成果在生命科学、农业、环境修复及医学等领域的应用前景。

The diversity of the radio-resistant bacteria Deinococcus radiodurans

Some terrestrial microorganisms can survive in extremely severe environments, such as high temperature, high salinity, strongly acidic, or strongly alkaline conditions. Elucidation of the adaptive mechanisms of these extremophiles to extreme environments will provide meaningful insights into the evolution and diversity of organisms. Deinococcus radiodurans, a representative radioresistant bacterium, are extremely resistant to ionizing radiation and other DNA-damaging factors. The D37 of D. radiodurans is 7 kGy, for example, while that of Escherichia coli is only 40 Gy. The tolerance of D. radiodurans to radiation is due to high DNA repair rates, high antioxidant activity, specialized cell structures, and uncommon intracellular environments; this bacterium is considered a model organism in the study of DNA damage and repair. This paper summarizes the recent research on the diversity of radioresistant bacteria, including their environments, factors that influence resistance to DNA damage, mechanisms of DNA damage and repair, and central repair genes, which are associated with the repair of double-stranded DNA breaks in Deinococcus radiodurans. The potential applications of this knowledge to life sciences, agriculture, contaminative environmental biorepair, and medicine are also discussed.