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- Microbial Fingerprinting
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- Antarctic Discovery
ZyGEM is a proud sponsor of Antarctic Heritage Trusts which seeks to conserve Antarctica's human legacy such as Scott's cabin pictured above
ANTARCTIC DISCOVERY
Going to Extremes to Develop Novel Products
ZyGEM’s product pipeline is derived from a novel collection of extremophiles, microorganisms that dwell in some of the harshest ecosystems on the planet. These bacteria, archaea, and fungi have adapted to thrive in extreme temperature and pH conditions found in such places as hydrothermal vents, the Mars-like desiccated Dry Valleys of Antarctica and exotic rainforests. In order to live in these conditions, extremophiles produce unique proteins, such as enzymes, that have characteristics that are exceptionally valuable in developing new technologies for clinical, industrial and laboratory purposes .
The prepGEM™, forensicGEM™ and livestockGEM™ products for DNA extraction utilize a novel enzymes found near oneof the most extreme places in the world, the Erebus, a 12,451 ft high volcanoe on Ross Island,Antarctica. Click here to see a Landsat satellite Image Mosaic of anAntarctica Flyover of McMurdo Station and Dry Valleys.
Images of Mt. Erebus, Antarctica
Located on Ross Island in the Antarctica, Mt. Erebus is the world's southern-most active volcano. Discovered in 1841 by James Ross, it is one of the only volcanoes in the world with a long-lived lava lake. At 12,445 feet high (3794 meters), the crater rim was first ascended in 1908 by members of Ernest Shackleton's expedition. The approximate average temperature in winter is -58 degrees Fahrenheit (-50 Celsius) and in summer is -4 degrees Fahrenheit (-20 Celsius). (Images courtesy of the National Science Foundation and ZyGEM).
Scientific research at the Mt. Erebus Volcano Observatory (MEVO) is sponsored by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).
McMurdo Station, Antarctica's largest community, is built near Mt. Erebus on the volcanic rock of Hut Point Peninsula on Ross Island. This land is the farthest south solid ground that is accessible by ship. Established in 1956, the station has grown from an outpost of a few buildings to a complex logistics staging facility capable of supporting over 1,200 residents. Today it is a science research center operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program, a branch of the National Science Foundation.
Scott base, a much smaller facility, is New Zealand's main base in Antarctica. It was set up as support to field research and the center for research into earth sciences, but now conducts research in many fields.
Click view Larger Map of entire Antarctic region.