Unusual autofluorescence characteristic of cultured red-rain cells

Godfrey Louis; A. Santhosh Kumar

doi:10.1117/12.794041

28 August 2008 Unusual autofluorescence characteristic of cultured red-rain cells

Godfrey Louis, A. Santhosh Kumar

Proceedings Volume 7097, Instruments, Methods, and Missions for Astrobiology XI; 709712 (2008) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.794041
Event: Optical Engineering + Applications, 2008, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

The red cells found in the red rain in Kerala, India are now considered as a possible case of extraterrestrial life form. These cells can undergo rapid replication even at an extreme high temperature of 300 deg C. They can also be cultured in diverse unconventional chemical substrates. The molecular composition of these cells is yet to be identified. This paper reports the unusual autofluorescence characteristic of the cultured red rain cells. A spectrofluorimetric study has been performed to investigate this, which shows a systematic shift of the fluorescence emission peak wavelength as the excitation wavelength is increased. Conventional biomolecules are not known to have this property. Details of this investigation and the results are discussed.

Citation Download Citation

Godfrey Louis and A. Santhosh Kumar "Unusual autofluorescence characteristic of cultured red-rain cells", Proc. SPIE 7097, Instruments, Methods, and Missions for Astrobiology XI, 709712 (28 August 2008); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.794041

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available