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Biological Effects of High Ultraviolet Radiation on Early Earth—a Theoretical Evaluation
Abstract
The surface of early Earth was exposed to both UVC radiation (< 280 nm) and higher doses of UVB (280-315 nm) compared with the surface of present day Earth. The degree to which this radiation environment acted as a selection pressure on organisms and biological systems has rarely been theoretically examined with respect to the biologically effective irradiances that ancient organisms would receive. Here action spectra for DNA inactivation and isolated chloroplast inhibition are used to estimate biologically effective irradiances on archean Earth. Comparisons are made with present day Earth. The theoretical estimations on the UV radiation screening required to protect DNA on archean Earth compare well with field and laboratory observations on protection strategies found in present day microbial communities. They suggest that many physical and biological methods may have been effective and would have allowed for the radiation of life even under the high UV radiation regimes of archean Earth. Such strategies would also have provided effective reduction of photoinhibition by UV radiation. The data also suggest that the UV regime on the surface of Mars is not a life limiting factor per se, although other environmental factors such as desiccation and low temperatures may contribute towards the apparent lack of a surface biota.
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“However, it has been observed that wavelengths below 290 nm are most damaging to DNA, and that the Archean Earth would have experienced a higher flux of shorter-wavelength UV radiation though water and atmospheric carbon dioxide may have efficiently blocked wavelengths much below 200 nm (Cockell 1998;Ranjan and Sasselov 2016).”
From Environmental Adaptation from the Origin of Life to the Last Universal Common Ancestor (2018) · cites this paper as Cockell 1998
In the citing paper
“Radiation shielding can be effectively provided by a water column, ice cover, sediment, organic material or other barriers (Cockell 1998), but the importance of UV in prebiotic chemistry suggests that shielded environments which could plausibly be in fairly close contact with unshielded environments should be preferred.”
From Environmental Adaptation from the Origin of Life to the Last Universal Common Ancestor (2018) · cites this paper as Cockell 1998
In the citing paper
“However, it has been observed that wavelengths below 290 nm are most damaging to DNA, and that the Archean Earth would have experienced a higher flux of shorter-wavelength UV radiation though water and atmospheric carbon dioxide may have efficiently blocked wavelengths much below 200 nm (Cockell 1998;Ranjan and Sasselov 2016).”
From Environmental Adaptation from the Origin of Life to the Last Universal Common Ancestor (2018) · cites this paper as Cockell 1998
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Ultraviolet radiation screening compounds
Cockell, C. S., & Knowland, J. (1999) · Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · doi:10.1017/s0006323199005356 · Cited by 842
“Elemental sulphur can also potentially provide specific UV absorption (Cockell, 1998a).”
BackgroundInfluentialSelf-citationFarquhar, J., Savarino, J., Airieau, S., & Thiemens, M. H. (2001) · Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets · doi:10.1029/2000je001437 · Cited by 518
A phylogenomic study of DNA repair genes, proteins, and processes
Eisen, J. A., & Hanawalt, P. C. (1999) · Mutation Research/DNA Repair · doi:10.1016/s0921-8777(99)00050-6 · Cited by 469
The Pale Orange Dot: The Spectrum and Habitability of Hazy Archean Earth
Arney, G., Domagal-Goldman, S. D., Meadows, V. S., Wolf, E. T., Schwieterman, E., Charnay, B., Claire, M., Hébrard, E., & Trainer, M. G. (2016) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2015.1422 · Cited by 327
“On the other hand, if organisms remained protected by some other UV shield such as minerals, layers of overlying microbial mat, or water (Cockell, 1998), changes in UV radiation levels should not affect them as strongly, so the colder conditions created by the haze might have been the larger source…”
The Ultraviolet Environment of Mars: Biological Implications Past, Present, and Future
Cockell, C. S. (2000) · Icarus · doi:10.1006/icar.2000.6393 · Cited by 330
“…for Archean Earth and present-day M it has been suggested that even the present-day martian UV may not be a limitation to the evolution of life (Cockell 1998 However, it is in synergy with other extremes such as low temp atures and the lack of liquid water that the environmental str of UV…”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialSelf-citationThe Santa Barbara Basin is a symbiosis oasis
Bernhard, J. M., Buck, K. R., Farmer, M. A., & Bowser, S. S. (2000) · Nature · doi:10.1038/47476 · Cited by 270
“Because deep water provides refuge against ultraviolet radiatio”
BackgroundBiosignature Preservation and Detection in Mars Analog Environments
Hays, L. E., Graham, H. V., Marais, D. J. D., Hausrath, E. M., Horgan, B. H. N., McCollom, T. M., Parenteau, M. N., Potter‐McIntyre, S. L., Williams, A. J., & Lynch, K. L. (2017) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2016.1627 · Cited by 276
“Both iron and elemental sulfur have been shown to provide some shielding against UV radiation, which may delay or prevent the breakdown of organic matter due to radiolysis (Cockell, 1998; Gomez et al., 2003).”
BackgroundUV-protectants in cyanobacteria
Sinha, R., & Häder, D. (2008) · Plant Science · doi:10.1016/j.plantsci.2007.12.004 · Cited by 251
How to Characterize Habitable Worlds and Signs of Life
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Cyanobacterial Responses to UV Radiation
Castenholz, R. W., & García‐Pichel, F. (2012) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-94-007-3855-3_19 · Cited by 242
Wynn-Williams, D., & Edwards, H. (2000) · Icarus · doi:10.1006/icar.1999.6307 · Cited by 216
Screening of visible and UV radiation as a photoprotective mechanism in plants
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Catalase delivery for inhibiting ROS-mediated tissue injury and tumor metastasis
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High-Responsivity Deep-Ultraviolet-Selective Photodetectors Using Ultrathin Gallium Oxide Films
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Arney, G., Meadows, V. S., Domagal-Goldman, S. D., Deming, D., Robinson, T. D., Mendoza, G. T., Wolf, E. T., & Schwieterman, E. W. (2017) · The Astrophysical Journal · doi:10.3847/1538-4357/836/1/49 · Cited by 179
“Of course, life can also take refuge from UV radiation under other types of chemical or physical UV shields (e.g., within a liquid water column) so even these higher UV fluxes do not necessarily prohibit life (Cockell 1998).”
BackgroundAntarctic ecosystems as models for extraterrestrial surface habitats
Wynn-Williams, D. D., & Edwards, H. G. M. (2000) · Planetary and Space Science · doi:10.1016/s0032-0633(00)00080-5 · Cited by 157
Habitat of early life: Solar X‐ray and UV radiation at Earth's surface 4–3.5 billion years ago
Cnossen, I., Sanz‐Forcada, J., Favata, F., Witasse, O. G., Zegers, T. E., & Arnold, N. F. (2007) · Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres · doi:10.1029/2006je002784 · Cited by 180
“This causes surface fluxes to be lower for larger zenith angles, up to a factor of 10 at the poles [see, e. g., Cockell, 1998].”
Singh, S. P., Kumari, S., Rastogi, R. P., Singh, K. L., & Sinha, R. P. (2008) · PubMed · Cited by 146
Jones, D., & Baxter, B. K. (2017) · Frontiers in Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fmicb.2017.01882 · Cited by 158
“Early aquatic life was likely exposed to an influx of intense short-wavelength UV as the Earth had no ozone layer (Cockell, 1998; Bérces et al., 2006; Westall et al., 2006).”
BackgroundThe ultraviolet history of the terrestrial planets — implications for biological evolution
Cockell, C. S. (2000) · Planetary and Space Science · doi:10.1016/s0032-0633(99)00087-2 · Cited by 144
Self-citationEdwards, H. G. M., Moody, C. D., Villar, S. E. J., & Wynn-Williams, D. D. (2005) · Icarus · doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2004.07.029 · Cited by 138
UV SURFACE ENVIRONMENT OF EARTH-LIKE PLANETS ORBITING FGKM STARS THROUGH GEOLOGICAL EVOLUTION
Rugheimer, S., Segura, A., Kaltenegger, L., & Sasselov, D. (2015) · The Astrophysical Journal · doi:10.1088/0004-637x/806/1/137 · Cited by 131
“Previous studies used an analytic atmospheric attenuation model to model UV environment for Archean Earth (Cockell 1998, 1999, 2000; Cnossen et al. 2007) as well as F stars (Sato et al. 2014).”
MethodCockell, C. S. (1999) · Planetary and Space Science · doi:10.1016/s0032-0633(99)00036-7 · Cited by 132
Self-citationEffects of solar ultraviolet radiation on coral reef organisms
Banaszak, A. T., & Lesser, M. P. (2009) · Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences · doi:10.1039/b902763g · Cited by 119
ACCELERATED MOLECULAR EVOLUTION IN HALOPHILIC CRUSTACEANS
Hebert, P. D. N., Remigio, E. A., Colbourne, J. K., Taylor, D. J., & Wilson, C. C. (2002) · Evolution · doi:10.1111/j.0014-3820.2002.tb01404.x · Cited by 119
“For example, the rise of oxygen in the Proterozoic must have released a barrage of mutations as DNA repair systems gained their first experience with oxidative damage coincident with high UV irradiance (Conway Morris 1995; Cockell 1998).”
The Pale Orange Dot: The Spectrum and Habitability of Hazy Archean Earth
Arney, G., Domagal-Goldman, S. D., Meadows, V., Wolf, E. T., Schwieterman, E. W., Charnay, B., Claire, M. W., Hébrard, É., & Trainer, M. G. (2025) · Figshare · Cited by 117
Sunlight as an energetic driver in the synthesis of molecules necessary for life
Rapf, R. J., & Vaida, V. (2016) · Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics · doi:10.1039/c6cp00980h · Cited by 120
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Buccino, A. P., Lemarchand, G. A., & Mauas, P. J. D. (2007) · Icarus · doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2007.08.012 · Cited by 114
“In particular, UV radiation between 200 and 300 nm is known to inhibit photosynthesis, induce DNA destruction and cause damage to a wide variety of proteins and lipids (Lindberg and Horneck, 1991; Cockell, 1998).”
Astrophysical and Astrobiological Implications of Gamma‐Ray Burst Properties
Scalo, J., & Wheeler, J. C. (2002) · The Astrophysical Journal · doi:10.1086/338329 · Cited by 110
“For the atmospheric attenu-Fcr,UV \ 1 ] 103ation, we adopt the calculations of Cockell (1998) for the absorption and scattering in and atmospheres thatCO2 N2give about a factor of 3 in the 200È300 nm region.”
MethodKlassen, J. L. (2010) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0011257 · Cited by 108
Habitat of early life: Solar X-ray and UV radiation at Earth's surface 4-3.5 billion years ago
Cnossen, I., Sanz-Forcada, J., Favata, F., Witasse, O. G., Zegers, T. E., & Arnold, N. F. (2007) · CERN Document Server (European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Cited by 102
Ultraviolet Radiation and the Photobiology of Earth's Early Oceans
Cockell, C. S. (2000) · Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres · doi:10.1023/a:1006765405786 · Cited by 100
“…consequences (e.g., Sagan, 1973; Marguliset al., 1976; Rambler and Margulis, 1980 and more recently Garcia-Pichel, 1988; Rettberget al., 1998; Cockell, 1998; Rothschild, 1999), particularly in the light of the fact that microbial ecosystems existed at this time (e.g., Schopf and Packer,…”
BackgroundResultSelf-citationPhotoinhibition, UV-B and Algal Photosynthesis
Franklin, L. A., Osmond, C. B., & Larkum, A. W. D. (2003) · Advances in photosynthesis and respiration · doi:10.1007/978-94-007-1038-2_16 · Cited by 96
Barta, A., & Horváth, G. (2003) · Journal of Theoretical Biology · doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2003.09.017 · Cited by 93
Thermodynamic dissipation theory for the origin of life
Michaelian, K. (2011) · Earth System Dynamics · doi:10.5194/esd-2-37-2011 · Cited by 104
“, 2007), or beneficial effect; through promoting necessary photochemical reactions, such as abiogenic synthesis of the nucleic acid bases, ribose and other carbohydrates (Schwartz, 1995), as well as a favorable selective pressure (Sagan, 1973), on the first molecules of life (Cockell, 1998; Cnossen et al., 2007; Mart…”
BackgroundRisks for Life on Habitable Planets from Superflares of Their Host Stars
Lingam, M., & Loeb, A. (2017) · The Astrophysical Journal · doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aa8e96 · Cited by 86
“However, in light of the enhanced mutations and selection pressure induced by flares (Sagan 1961, 1973; Cockell 1998; Dartnell 2011), the periods in between these extinctions may witness rapid speciation.”
BackgroundEvolution of the structure and impact of Earth’s biosphere
Planavsky, N. J., Crowe, S. A., Fakhraee, M., Beaty, B., Reinhard, C. T., Mills, B. J. W., Holstege, C., & Konhauser, K. O. (2021) · Nature Reviews Earth & Environment · doi:10.1038/s43017-020-00116-w · Cited by 102
Lee, S. H., Lee, K. M., Kim, Y.-B., Moon, Y., Kim, S. B., Bae, D., Kim, T. J., Kim, Y. D., Kim, S., & Lee, S. W. (2018) · Journal of Alloys and Compounds · doi:10.1016/j.jallcom.2018.11.333 · Cited by 79
Effects of solar radiation on collagen and chitosan films
Sionkowska, A. (2005) · Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B Biology · doi:10.1016/j.jphotobiol.2005.08.003 · Cited by 78
Vera, J.-P. P. D., Horneck, G., Rettberg, P., & Ott, S. (2002) · International Journal of Astrobiology · doi:10.1017/s1473550403001216 · Cited by 77
“UV-C radiation at the wavelength of l=254 nm is known to have lethal effects on most species (Cockell 1998), because it is efficiently absorbed by the DNA of the cells.”
BackgroundPulschen, A. A., Rodrigues, F., Duarte, R. T. D., de Araujo, G. G., Santiago, I. F., Paulino‐Lima, I. G., Rosa, C. A., Kato, M. J., Pellizari, V. H., & Galante, D. (2015) · MicrobiologyOpen · doi:10.1002/mbo3.262 · Cited by 76
“UV-C radiation (200– 280 nm) was probably present on the environment of the Archaean Earth, before the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere (Cockell 1998).”
BackgroundFendrihan, S., Bérces, A., Lammer, H., Musso, M. E., Rontó, G., Polacsek, T. K., Holzinger, A., Kolb, C., & Stan‐Lotter, H. (2009) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2007.0234 · Cited by 75
“Early life on Earth, therefore, was likely resistant to UV, and it follows that potential microbiota on Mars may have possessed, or may possess, resistance to this type of radiation as well, which can produce extensive DNA damage (Cockell, 1998; Cadet et al., 2005).”
All You Need Is Light. Photorepair of UV-Induced Pyrimidine Dimers
Banaś, A. K., Zgłobicki, P., Kowalska, E., Bażant, A., Dziga, D., & Strzałka, W. (2020) · Genes · doi:10.3390/genes11111304 · Cited by 80
“The levels of UV-A, UV-B and UV-C emitted by the Sun were higher when the Earth was young than they are at present; furthermore, the two latter bands were not absorbed by the ozone layer then, as it had not formed yet [10].”
BackgroundEnvironmental UV Radiation: Biological Strategies for Protection and Avoidance
Wynn-Williams, D. D., & Edwards, H. G. M. (2002) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-59381-9_17 · Cited by 73
Fornaro, T., Boosman, A., Brucato, J. R., ten Kate, I. L., Siljeström, S. M., Poggiali, G., Steele, A., & Hazen, R. M. (2018) · Icarus · doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2018.05.001 · Cited by 74
“TiO 2 may act either as photosta-bilizer or photocatalyst ( Allen et al., 2004, 1998; Chen et al., 2007; Zeynalov and Allen, 2006 ).”
Responses of aquatic algae and cyanobacteria to solar UV-B
Sinha, R. P., Klisch, M., Gröniger, A., & Häder, D. (2001) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-94-017-2892-8_21 · Cited by 69
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Buccino, A. P., Lemarchand, G. A., & Mauas, P. J. D. (2006) · Icarus · doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2006.03.007 · Cited by 70
“The results are consistent with previous analysis performed by Cockell (1998, 2000), Cockell et al. (2000), and Córdoba-Jabonero et al. (2003).”
MethodResultInfluentialRozema, J., Noordijk, A. J., Broekman, R., van Beem, A., Meijkamp, B., de Bakker, N. V. J., van de Staaij, J. W. M., Stroetenga, M., BOHNCKE, S. J. P., KONERT, M., et al. (2001) · Plant Ecology · doi:10.1023/a:1012913608353 · Cited by 69
“…or theoretically past levels of solar UV-B are considered in studies reconstructing the early atmosphere, the evolution of the biosphere or 13 the possibilities of extraplanetary life (Cockell 1998, 1999, 2000; Garcia-Pichel 1998; Kasting et al. 1989, 1993; Pierson et al. 1993; Towe 1996).”
BackgroundResponses of aquatic algae and cyanobacteria to solar UV-B
Sinha, R. P., Klisch, M., Gröniger, A., & Häder, D. (2001) · Plant Ecology · doi:10.1023/a:1012986500543 · Cited by 68
“MAAs play a vital role as osmotic regulators in some cyanobacteria (Oren 1997) and such alternative roles may have given rise to the first UV-screening MAAs (Cockell 1998).”
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Jeong, S. H., Vu, T. K. O., & Kim, E. K. (2021) · Journal of Alloys and Compounds · doi:10.1016/j.jallcom.2021.160291 · Cited by 67
Evolutionary toxicology: Toward a unified understanding of life's response to toxic chemicals
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“…animals, faced a central problem of evolving mechanisms for coping with toxicity imposed, for example, by heavy metals, ultraviolet light, oxygen, microbial toxins, and defensive chemicals produced by plants (Cockell, 1998; Coyle, Philcox, Carey, & Rofe, 2002; Kirschvink & Kopp, 2008; Rico, 2001).”
BackgroundRaman spectroscopy of endoliths from Antarctic cold desert environments
Villar, S. E. J., Edwards, H. G. M., & Cockell, C. S. (2004) · The Analyst · doi:10.1039/b410854j · Cited by 60
Self-citationWaßmann, M., Moeller, R., Reitz, G., & Rettberg, P. (2010) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2009.0455 · Cited by 58
“Taking the data of UV fluxes on early Earth from Cockell (1998) into account, it can be stated that the UV-evolved strain MW01 would survive 2min 30 s ( F 10–6 ¼ 10.9kJ/m 2 ) unattenuated under these UV climate conditions until reaching an inactivation by 6 orders of magnitude, which is…”
Evidence for cavity-dwelling microbial life in 3.22 Ga tidal deposits
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Environmental Adaptation from the Origin of Life to the Last Universal Common Ancestor
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“While ultraviolet light between 200-280 nm (UVC) is today blocked by the modern atmosphere and ozone layer, it was likely a significant force on the early Earth (Ranjan and Sasselov 2016, Cockell 1998).”
BackgroundInfluentialSanromá, E., Pallé, E., Parenteau, M. N., Kiang, N. Y.-L., Gutiérrez-Navarro, A. M., López, R. L., & Montañés-Rodríguez, P. (2013) · The Astrophysical Journal · doi:10.1088/0004-637x/780/1/52 · Cited by 54
“Studies of modern microbes, however, suggest that their photoprotective pigments, that absorb in the blue and UV (e.g., carotenoids), are sufficient to have allowed for their survival in terrestrial and shallow water environments on the early Earth (Cockell 1998).”
BackgroundSchafheimer, N., & King, J. W. (2013) · Photochemistry and Photobiology · doi:10.1111/php.12096 · Cited by 53
“4 billion years ago limited 55 terrestrial UVR exposure to the UVA (400-315 nm) and UVB (315-280 nm) 56 ranges, UVR still exerts selective pressure on extant creatures (4).”
BackgroundCarbon Biochemistry and the Ultraviolet Radiation Environments of F, G, and K Main Sequence Stars
Cockell, C. (1999) · Icarus · doi:10.1006/icar.1999.6167 · Cited by 78
Self-citationZhang, Y., & Xie, H. (2015) · Biogeosciences · doi:10.5194/bg-12-6823-2015 · Cited by 51
Infrared spectral investigations of UV irradiated nucleobases adsorbed on mineral surfaces
Fornaro, T., Brucato, J. R., Pace, E., Guidi, M. C., Branciamore, S., & Pucci, A. (2013) · Icarus · doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2013.07.024 · Cited by 52
Importance of biological loess crusts for loess formation in semi-arid environments
Svirčev, Z. B., Marković, S. B., Stevens, T., Codd, G. A., Smalley, I. J., Simeunović, J. B., Obreht, I., Dulić, T., Pantelić, D., & Hambach, U. (2012) · Quaternary International · doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2012.10.048 · Cited by 49
Varnalı, T., & Edwards, H. G. M. (2010) · Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A Mathematical Physical and Engineering Sciences · doi:10.1098/rsta.2010.0019 · Cited by 48
“On Mars, calculations (Cockell 1998) reveal that DNA-weighted irradiances related to the present day Earth values are as follows: daily fluence (kJ m−2) is 21 × 103 (Earth) to 12 × 106 (Mars) and the instantaneous light flux is 950 : 1 Mars : Earth.”
Abiotic Regioselective Phosphorylation of Adenosine with Borate in Formamide
Furukawa, Y., Kim, H.-J., Hutter, D., & Benner, S. A. (2015) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2014.1209 · Cited by 44
“Therefore, the bo-rate-moderated phosphorylation reactions reported here are conceivable in sediment pore solvent in such lacustrine environments on a prebiotic Earth where UV radiation was shielded by minerals or salts (Cockell, 1998).”
Machowinski, A., Krämer, H., Hort, W., & Mayser, P. A. (2006) · Mycoses · doi:10.1111/j.1439-0507.2006.01265.x · Cited by 40
Edwards, H. G. M., Moody, C. D., Newton, E. M., Villar, S. E. J., & Russell, M. J. (2005) · Icarus · doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2004.12.006 · Cited by 41
Aroma characterisation and UV elicitation of purple basil from different plant tissue cultures
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Astrobiological significance of minerals on Mars surface environment
Martínez‐Frías, J., Amaral, G., & Vázquez, L. (2006) · Reviews in Environmental Science and Bio/Technology · doi:10.1007/s11157-006-0008-x · Cited by 39
“Various works on the biological effects of UV radiation (Cockell, 1998, Cockell et al. 2000) have established that even the present-day instantaneous Martian UV flux would not in itself prevent life.”
BackgroundThe Ultraviolet Radiation Environment of Earth and Mars: Past and Present
Cockell, C. S. (2002) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-59381-9_15 · Cited by 36
Self-citationHabitable zones and UV habitable zones around host stars
Guo, J., Zhang, F., Zhang, X., & Han, Z. (2009) · Astrophysics and Space Science · doi:10.1007/s10509-009-0173-9 · Cited by 34
“However, others pointed out that life existence not only needs clement temperature, but also appropriate ultraviolet radiation (eg., Setlow & Doyle, 1954; Lindberg & Horneck, 1991; Cockell, 1998; Hoyle & Wickrasinghe, 2003; Sequra et al., 2003).”
BackgroundEdwards, H. G. M., Cockell, C. S., Newton, E. M., & Wynn-Williams, D. D. (2004) · Journal of Raman Spectroscopy · doi:10.1002/jrs.1172 · Cited by 34
Self-citationPhotosynthesis in Hydrogen-Dominated Atmospheres
Bains, W., Seager, S., & Zsom, A. (2014) · Life · doi:10.3390/life4040716 · Cited by 34
Suchar, V. A., & Robberecht, R. (2016) · Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.1002/ece3.2064 · Cited by 30
“Plants optimize the resource allocation by investing resources in such a way that maximizes the returns, that is, the growth of organs involved in the acquisition of the limiting resources is promoted (Bloom et al. 1985; Wayne and Bazzaz 1993; Bazzaz 1997; Heilmeier et al. 1997; Cockell 1998).”
BackgroundThe origin of methane and biomolecules from a CO2 cycle on terrestrial planets
Civiš, S., Knížek, A., Ivanek, O., Kubelík, P., Zukalová, M., Kavan, L., & Ferus, M. (2017) · Nature Astronomy · doi:10.1038/s41550-017-0260-8 · Cited by 30
“m (280 nm).(32,33) The irradiance profiles on Mars, early and present”
BackgroundUltraviolet radiation sensitivity in cave bacteria: evidence of adaptation to the subsurface?
Snider, J. R., Goin, C., Miller, R. V., Boston, P. J., & Northup, D. E. (2009) · International Journal of Speleology · doi:10.5038/1827-806x.38.1.2 · Cited by 28
“However, whether these additional methods actually protect the bacterial DNA is widely debated (Mathews & Sistrom, 1959; Dworkin & Stanley, 2006; Gascon et al., 1995; Lewis et al., 1973; Singer & Ames, 1970; Nasium & James, 1978; Cockell, 1998; Arrage et al., 1993a).”
BackgroundA Photobiological History of Earth
Cockell, C. S. (2001) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4757-3486-7_1 · Cited by 28
Self-citationChanges in terrestrial natural radiation levels over the history of life
Karam, P. A., & Leslie, S. A. (2005) · Radioactivity in the environment · doi:10.1016/s1569-4860(04)07011-1 · Cited by 27
Rupiasih, N. N., & Vidyasagar, P. B. (2016) · AIP conference proceedings · doi:10.1063/1.4943730 · Cited by 27
Radiation: microbial evolution, ecology, and relevance to Mars missions
Rothschild, L. J., & Cockell, C. S. (1999) · Mutation research. Fundamental and molecular mechanisms of mutagenesis · doi:10.1016/s0027-5107(99)00140-2 · Cited by 27
Self-citationKaram, P. A. (2003) · Health Physics · doi:10.1097/00004032-200303000-00005 · Cited by 25
“…we can draw corollaries from similar organisms that are extant today, it is likely that many early photosynthetic organisms lived in waters less than a few meters in depth, placing them well within the zone into which UVB and UVC can penetrate (Kasting and Chang 1992; Cockell 1998; Cockell 2001).”
BackgroundThe ultraviolet habitable zone of exoplanets
Spinelli, R., Borsa, F., Ghirlanda, G., Ghisellini, G., & Haardt, F. (2023) · Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society · doi:10.1093/mnras/stad928 · Cited by 28
Galactic Punctuated Equilibrium: How to Undermine Carter's Anthropic Argument in Astrobiology
Ćirković, M., Vukotić, B., & Dragičević, I. (2009) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2007.0200 · Cited by 24
“…toward an interconnected, complex view of our planet has already been in place for quite some time in both empirical and theoretical work ( e.g., Clube and Napier, 1990; Cockell, 1998; Burgess and Zuber, 2000; Lenton and von Bloh, 2001; Franck et al., 2000; Iyudin, 2002; Gies and Helsel, 2005).”
Billi, D., Napoli, A., Mosca, C., Fagliarone, C., Carolis, R. D., Balbi, A., Scanu, M., Selinger, V. M., Antonaru, L. A., & Nürnberg, D. J. (2022) · Frontiers in Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fmicb.2022.933404 · Cited by 23
“UVCabsorbing pigments such as scytonemin (Cockell, 1998), or possible alternative UV-protective mechanisms such as biofluorescence, could also be involved (O’Malley-James and Kaltenegger, 2019).”
BackgroundSubbotin, V., & Fiksel, G. (2023) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/ast.2021.0161 · Cited by 26
“…from the historical evolution of the solar UV luminosity indicate that at the time of primitive Earth, the UV radiation was of a shorter wavelength (Miller and Urey, 1959) and had an intensity of 3–4 orders of magnitude higher than at present (Zahnle and Walker, 1982; Cockell, 1998, 2000).”
BackgroundBange, H. W., & Uher, G. (2004) · Chemosphere · doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2004.06.022 · Cited by 24
“6 · 10(9) years ago was approximately 3 times higher than present day levels (Cockell, 1998).”
BackgroundInfluential(Poly)phenolic compounds in pollen and spores of Antarctic plants as indicators of solar UV-B
Rozema, J., Noordijk, A. J., Broekman, R., van Beem, A., Meijkamp, B., de Bakker, N. V. J., van de Staaij, J. W. M., Stroetenga, M., BOHNCKE, S. J. P., KONERT, M., et al. (2001) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-94-017-2892-8_2 · Cited by 24
Dark Dune Spots: Possible Biomarkers on Mars?
Gánti, T., Horváth, A., Bérczi, S., Gesztesi, A., & Szathmáry, E. (2003) · Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres · doi:10.1023/a:1025705828948 · Cited by 24
“Moreover, it must be borne in mind that the present-day UV exposure of the Martian surface to UV radiation is comparable to that of the Archean Earth (Cockell, 1998; Rothschild and Cockell, 1999).”
BackgroundBrines in Seepage Channels as Eluants for Subsurface Relict Biomolecules on Mars?
Wynn-Williams, D. D., Cabrol, N. A., Grin, E. A., Haberle, R. M., & Stoker, C. R. (2001) · Astrobiology · doi:10.1089/153110701753198936 · Cited by 25
“…systems of Archean geothermal microbes (Nisbet and Sleep, 2001), would have been favored by selective pressure because solar radiation is a ubiquitous energy source and photosynthesis is the most efficient energy-harnessing system of the known biosphere (Cockell, 1998; Garcia-Pichel, 1998).”
A novel retinoic acid analogue, 7-hydroxy retinoic acid, isolated from cyanobacteria
Kaya, K., Shiraishi, F., Uchida, H., & Sano, T. (2010) · Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - General Subjects · doi:10.1016/j.bbagen.2010.11.009 · Cited by 23
UV absorbent, marmesin, from the bark of Thanakha,Hesperethusa crenulata L.
Joo, S., Lee, S.-C., & Kim, S. (2004) · Journal of Plant Biology · doi:10.1007/bf03030648 · Cited by 23
The Evolution of the Cyanobacterial Posttranslational Clock from a Primitive “Phoscillator”
Simons, M. J. P. (2009) · Journal of Biological Rhythms · doi:10.1177/0748730409333953 · Cited by 23
Leuko, S., Neilan, B. A., Burns, B. P., Walter, M. R., & Rothschild, L. J. (2010) · Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B Biology · doi:10.1016/j.jphotobiol.2010.10.002 · Cited by 22
“Surviving high levels of UVR depends upon three factors: avoidance, protection and repair [20,21].”
BackgroundBroad Range (254–302 nm) and High Performance Ga 2 O 3 :SnO 2 Based Deep UV Photodetector
Mondal, A., Nandi, S., Yadav, M. K., Nandi, A., & Bag, A. (2022) · IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology · doi:10.1109/tnano.2022.3186472 · Cited by 21
Potenti, S., Manini, P., Fornaro, T., Poggiali, G., Crescenzi, O., Napolitano, A., Brucato, J. R., Barone, V., & d’Ischia, M. (2018) · ACS Earth and Space Chemistry · doi:10.1021/acsearthspacechem.8b00060 · Cited by 21
Lamprecht-Grandío, M., Cortesão, M., Mirete, S., de la Cámara, M. B., de Figueras, C. G., Pérez-Pantoja, D. R., White, J. J., Farı́as, M. E., Rossello-Mora, R. A., & González‐Pastor, J. E. (2020) · Frontiers in Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.00453 · Cited by 20
“…radiation exposure is believed to have been present on the early Archaean Earth, posing a challenge to life’s protection and cell repair processes (Cockell, 1998) and is currently prevailing in space environments such as the surfaces of spacecrafts and planetary bodies (Mancinelli and Klovstad,…”
BackgroundBiofluorescent worlds: global biological fluorescence as a biosignature
O’Malley-James, J. T., & Kaltenegger, L. (2018) · Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society · doi:10.1093/mnras/sty2411 · Cited by 20
“…by biological molecules, especially nucleic acids, harmful effects, such as mutation or inactivation can result, with shorter UV wavelengths having the most damaging effects (see e.g. Voet et al. 1963; Diffey, 1991; Matsunaga et al. 1991; Tevini 1993; Cockell, 1998; Kerwin & Remmele, 2007).”
BackgroundWang, Y.-Z., Lin, W., Li, J., & Pan, Y.-X. (2013) · Frontiers in Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fmicb.2013.00397 · Cited by 20
Habitability around F-type stars
Sato, S., Cuntz, M., Guerra Olvera, C. M., Jack, D., & Schröder, K.-P. (2014) · International Journal of Astrobiology · doi:10.1017/s1473550414000020 · Cited by 36
“Fortunately, however, the Earth’s ozone layer is very efficient to filter out this type of lethal radiation (e.g., Diffey 1991; Cockell 1998), which in our models is mathematically dealt with by considering an appropriate attenuation function α(λ) (see equation (1)).”
BackgroundBiological radiation dose from secondary particles in a Milky Way gamma-ray burst
Atri, D., Melott, A. L., & Karam, A. (2013) · International Journal of Astrobiology · doi:10.1017/s1473550413000414 · Cited by 16
“The loss of ozone in turn greatly reduces the opacity of the atmosphere to solar UVB radiation (Thomas et al., 2005a,b; Ejzak et al., 2007) – Cockell (1998) has calculated that, in the absence of an ozone layer, the DNA-weighted UV irradiance would be several hundred times higher than it is at…”
BackgroundSzabla, R., Šponer, J. E., Šponer, J., Sobolewski, A. L., & Góra, R. W. (2014) · Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics · doi:10.1039/c4cp02074j · Cited by 16
O’Malley-James, J. T., & Kaltenegger, L. (2019) · Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society · doi:10.1093/mnras/stz1842 · Cited by 25
Metadata
- Authors
- Cockell, C. S.
- Affiliations
- Carnegie Institution for Science (US)
- Corresponding author
- Cockell, Charles S.
- ORCID
- Cockell, Charles S.
- Venue
- Journal of Theoretical Biology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1998-08
- Volume
- 193
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 717-729
- ISSN
- 0022-5193 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1971891252
- Cited by
- 177
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 6.80
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Theoretical Biology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Origins and Evolution of Life
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
- Keywords
- early Earth, ultraviolet radiation, UV-B radiation, UV-C, Archean, DNA inactivation, action spectrum, photoinhibition, microbial communities, Mars surface, habitability
- MeSH terms
- Animals, DNA, DNA Damage, DNA Repair, Photosynthesis, Radiation Dosage, Radiation Injuries, Ultraviolet Rays, Earth, Planet
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