According to Mehr news agency, citing Science alertThe Chernobyl region is still dangerous for humans, but almost 40 years after the reactor explosion, other forms of life have not only survived but thrived there. One of the most amazing of them is the black fungus Cladosporium sphaerospermum, which is found on the inner walls of one of the the most radioactive The buildings of Chernobyl stick together and unexpectedly have an “ideal life” right there.
Scientists think that the reason for this phenomenon is not the absence of humans; Rather, intense ionizing radiation may have an advantage for this mushroom. This mushroom is rich in melanin; A pigment that can possibly absorb and use the energy of the rays through a process similar to photosynthesis; The process to which Radiosynthesis they say However, no one yet knows exactly why this fungus grows better in the presence of radiation. Radiosynthesis It is a theory for now.
This mystery started in the late 1990s; When a group of Ukrainian researchers encountered a large colony of dark colored mushrooms in Chernobyl and recorded 37 species. Most of them were Cladosporium sphaerospermum and they were active even in places with the highest level of radiation pollution. Unlike all known organisms, ionizing radiation not only did not harm this fungus, but actually promoted its growth.
In various experiments, it was found that mushroom melanin behaves differently when exposed to radiation; A behavior that has similarities to the mechanism of light absorption in chlorophyll. Melanin also acts as a protective shield and protects the mushroom structure from radioactive damage.
The same result was confirmed in 2022. Researchers took this mushroom into space and exposed it to galactic radiation in the outer part of the space station. The sensors below the sample showed that the fungus reduces the amount of transmitted radiation. The purpose of the review Radiosynthesis It was not, but it was to measure the capability of the mushroom as an anti-radiation biological shield for space missions.
However, it is not yet clear what mechanism exactly this mushroom uses and why it has such power.
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