NEW YORK (AP) — A microscopic discovery in a California lake sparked buzz and controversy more than a decade ago when it was first revealed. Scientists said they’d discovered bacteria that used the element arsenic — poisonous to life as we know it — to grow. If true, it expanded the possibilities for where life could exist on Earth — …
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‘Arsenic life’ study hailed by NASA as breakthrough in astrobiology retracted by Science due to contamination and flawed data
After 15 years of debate, a study that announced the alleged discovery of an arsenic-eating microbe has been retracted by the journal Science due to contaminated and flawed data. However, the original study authors disagree with the move. The microbe strain, labeled GFAJ-1, was recovered from the salty water of arsenic-rich Mono Lake in California by a research team led …
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