| Halomonas titanicae | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Proteobacteria |
| Class: | Gammaproteobacteria |
| Order: | Oceanospirillales |
| Family: | Halomonadaceae |
| Genus: | Halomonas |
| Species: | H. titanicae
|
| Binomial name | |
| Halomonas titanicae Mann, Kaur, Sánchez-Porro & Ventosa 2010[1]
| |
Halomonas titanicae is a gram-negative, halophilic species of proteobacteria which was discovered on rusticles recovered from the wreck of the RMS Titanic. Cristina Sánchez-Porro et al. first isolated the bacterium in 2010 from a sample of rusticle obtained from the RMS Titanic in 1991.[1] One of the researchers, Henrietta Mann has estimated that the action of microbes like Halomonas titanicae may bring about the total deterioration of the Titanic by 2030.[citation needed] While the bacteria have been identified as a potential danger to oil rigs and other man-made objects in the deep sea, it also has the potential to be used in bioremediation to accelerate the decomposition of shipwrecks littering the ocean floor.[2][3]
In summer 2016, using neutron diffraction, the facilities of the Institut Laue-Langevin demonstrate that a molecule called ectoine is used by these bacteria to survive the osmotic pressure that salt water causes on their membranes.[4]
