Climate Change Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Climate Change, including details on causes, effects, impact, facts, myths, information.

Functions and possible provenance of primordial proteins--Part II: microorganism aggregation in clouds triggered by climate change.

Sommer AP, Wickramasinghe NC

Central Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Ulm, 89081 Ulm, Germany. samoan@gmx.net

Current models predict that the elevation of the Earth's surface temperature due to global warming is accompanied by a warming of the troposphere, and a thickening cloud cover associated with longer-lasting clouds, in particular over land. These effects can have an instant impact on the vitality level of microorganisms in clouds and the spreading of airborne diseases. Microorganisms could originate from locations on the Earth, or even arrive from space. Primordial proteins in nanobacteria, only recently identified in the atmosphere, could play a significant role in clouds--accelerating the formation of cloud droplets and interconnecting nanobacteria (and possibly nanobacteria and other microorganisms), thus enhancing their chances to eventually reach the Earth.

Published 14 February 2005 in J Proteome Res, 4(1): 180-4.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2008 Climate Change Research Today. All Rights Reserved.