extremophile

/ ɪkˈstrɛməˌfaɪl /

noun

1. a microbe that lives in an environment once thought to be uninhabitable, for example in boiling or frozen water

extremophile

1. An organism adapted to living in conditions of extreme temperature, pressure, or chemical concentration, as in highly acidic or salty environments. Many extremophiles are unicellular organisms known as archaea.

Example Sentences

When you can do that, you're called an extremophile.

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Organisms that can survive in this suspended, or anabiotic, state, Yarzábal explained, include not just extremophile bacteria but also viruses, fungi, protozoa and microscopic animals called nematodes.

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But it won’t arrive until 2031 and that’s only one icy world that could be home to life — most recently, it was reported that Miranda, a moon of Uranus, might be another candidate for extremophile life that can flourish under intense cold.

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In ACS' Journal of Proteome Research, researchers detail a method for more accurate extremophile identification based on protein fragments instead of genetic material.

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These extremophile microbes are of interest to astrobiologists who are searching for life on other planets.

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