Amplifying Voices Webinars 2021

Haloarchaea are polyextremophile microorganisms belonging to the domain Archaea which are able to endure and proliferate in extreme physical parameters such as radiations (UV), temperature, pressure and geochemical parameters such as pH, salinity, redox potential, etc. The ability of haloarchaea to thrive in extremes demonstrates their great prospective for biotechnological processes in harsh industrial conditions. Culturable halophilic archaeal diversity of iodised crystal salt obtained from the solar salterns of Vedaranyam, Tamil Nadu, India was explored by surface spreading the salt crystals and incubating the plates for 30-45 days resulted in the growth of bright pink-orange-red pigmented colonies. The cultures were purified and identified using polyphasic approach. Halophilic archaeal produce various shades of bright orange-red C50 carotenoids such as the α-bacterioruberin (BR) which protects the cells from the harmful UV radiations, which in turn can be exploited in sunscreens. Haloarchaea are reservoir for novel enzymes known as “Extremozymes” because of their catalytic activity at extremes of environmental conditions, therefore serve as powerful tool in industrial processes operating at extreme conditions. Haloarchaea are known to synthesize biodegradable plastics known as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) which are biocompatible and therrfore finds applications in biomedical engineering. Further, haloarchaea secrete broad-spectrum growth inhibitory substances known as “archaeocins/halocins” which can be employed in leather industry and in food industry as preservatives. Haloarchaeal isolates are known for intracellular sequestration of heavy metals and are potential candidates for bioremediation of metal contaminated hypersaline environments.