Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by TNO 5177 days ago
Yes. For example: < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinococcus_radiodurans >
2 comments

But if all life on earth is descended from something resistant to radiation, why is most life on earth so vulnerable to it now?
Why do we need to consume Vitamin C to avoid scruvy? Evolution abandons what is no longer necessary.
Most animals don't need to do that.
Who says anything descended from this bacterium? Maybe it's not as competitive as other bacteria in more hospitable areas.
From the article:

Deinococcus radiodurans has a unique quality in which it can repair both single- and double-stranded DNA. When a mutation is apparent to the cell, it brings it into a compartmental ring-like structure, where the DNA is repaired and then is able to fuse the nucleoids from the outside of the compartment with the damaged DNA.

Amazing.