There are hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of species of microbe here on Earth, sharing an environment, evolutionary history and maybe even a common ancestor with us, and only a handful are pathogens, i.e., pose a health threat to human beings.
IF there is a single-celled flora or fauna on Mars, it is highly unlikely that they would be capable of existing in the human metabolism long enough to cause us any harm, much less be able to survive at all.
Pathogens are essentially highly evolved parasites, which have developed sophisticated weapons to penetrate our bodies' immune systems, and even they are often defeated by those defenses. It would be an extreme coincidence if any bug from an alien world, even one as life-friendly as our own, would be able to colonize our tissues. For that matter, I don't think we would even be able to use them as food, or vice-versa. Even if the alien organism is recognizeable to our bodies as a protein, I believe it would be treated as such by our immune systems, and we would suffer an allergic reaction, or even poisoning from it; but we would not get sick.
If we ever go a-colonizing off-world, we'd better take our own seeds and livestock with us, and lots of antihistamines.
Space/Science » in reply to OK!
Maybe not zero odds, but very close to zero.
The whole thread (42 posts)
- Well, Nick?..You're Mars theory has received it's most vital support evidence to date.
- Your inference that Mars harbors no pathogens is not supported
- Tharsis Bulge.
- Yet we still know very little
- re: Well, Nick?..You're Mars theory has received it's most vital support evidence to date.