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Environmental Sciences
Spain
2023

D-Index & Metrics

Environmental Sciences

D-Index
52
Citations
7451
World Ranking
4598
National Ranking
119

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2023 - Research.com Environmental Sciences in Spain Leader Award

Overview

Jacek Wierzchos is affiliated with the Spanish National Research Council in Spain. Their research spans several interconnected fields, primarily focusing on environmental science and agricultural and biological sciences. The work is notably concentrated on microbial ecology, planetary science, and related ecological and environmental topics.

In the course of their career, Wierzchos has contributed extensively to the understanding of microbial communities in extreme environments. Their research often explores microbial ecology within arid and hyperarid regions, such as the Atacama Desert, with a focus on biocrusts and microbial community physiology.

Key research topics include:

  • Biocrusts and Microbial Ecology
  • Planetary Science and Exploration
  • Algal biology and biofuel production
  • Polar Research and Ecology
  • Building materials and conservation
  • Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
  • Geology and Paleoclimatology Research

Their publication record reflects a strong emphasis on environmental and microbiological investigations, with frequent contributions to journals such as Frontiers in Microbiology, Scientific Reports, and Nature Communications. The most common publication venues include:

  • Frontiers in Microbiology
  • Scientific Reports
  • Nature Communications
  • Biogeosciences
  • The Science of The Total Environment

Selected recent papers authored or co-authored by Wierzchos include:

  • "Haloterrigena sp. Strain SGH1, a Bacterioruberin-Rich, Perchlorate-Tolerant Halophilic Archaeon Isolated From Halite Microbial Communities, Atacama Desert, Chile" (2020), published in Frontiers in Microbiology
  • "Inhabited subsurface wet smectites in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert as an analog for the search for life on Mars" (2020), published in Scientific Reports
  • "Dark microbiome and extremely low organics in Atacama fossil delta unveil Mars life detection limits" (2023), published in Nature Communications
  • "Response of Endolithic Chroococcidiopsis Strains From the Polyextreme Atacama Desert to Light Radiation" (2021), published in Frontiers in Microbiology
  • "Raman imaging of microbial colonization in rock-some analytical aspects" (2020), published in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry

Frequent collaborators in Wierzchos's research include Carmen Ascaso, Armando Azua-Bustos, María Cristina Casero, Carlos González-Silva, and Daniel Carrizo. These co-authors have worked together on multiple projects, contributing to a cohesive body of research in related fields.

Best Publications

  • Endolithic cyanobacteria in halite rocks from the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert.

    Jacek Wierzchos;Carmen Ascaso;Christopher P. McKay

  • Lichens Survive in Space: Results from the 2005 LICHENS Experiment

    Leopoldo G. Sancho;Rosa de la Torre;Gerda Horneck;Carmen Ascaso

  • Facilitation of endolithic microbial survival in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert by mineral deliquescence

    Alfonso F. Davila;Benito Gómez-Silva;Asunción de los Rios;Carmen Ascaso

  • Astrobiology through the ages of Mars: the study of terrestrial analogues to understand the habitability of Mars.

    Alberto G. Fairén;Alfonso F. Davila;Darlene Lim;Nathan Bramall

  • Application of back-scattered electron imaging to the study of the lichen-rock interface

    J. Wierzchos;C. Ascaso

  • Hygroscopic salts and the potential for life on Mars.

    Alfonso F. Davila;Luis Gago Duport;Riccardo Melchiorri;Jochen Jänchen

  • Early evolution and ecology of camouflage in insects

    Ricardo Pérez-de la Fuente;Xavier Delclòs;Enrique Peñalver;Mariela Speranza

  • Chains of magnetite crystals in the meteorite ALH84001: Evidence of biological origin

    E. Imre Friedmann;Jacek Wierzchos;Carmen Ascaso;Michael Winklhofer

  • Microbial colonization of Ca-sulfate crusts in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert: implications for the search for life on Mars.

    J. Wierzchos;B. Cámara;A. De Los Ríos;A. F. Davila

  • Microstructural Characterization of Cyanobacterial Mats from the McMurdo Ice Shelf, Antarctica

    Asunción de los Ríos;Carmen Ascaso;Jacek Wierzchos;Eduardo Fernández-Valiente

  • Microorganisms in desert rocks: the edge of life on Earth

    Jacek Wierzchos;Asunción de los Ríos;Carmen Ascaso

  • In situ evaluation of the biodeteriorating action of microorganisms and the effects of biocides on carbonate rock of the Jeronimos Monastery (Lisbon)

    C. Ascaso;J. Wierzchos;V. Souza-Egipsy;A. de los Rı́os

  • Survival of lichens and bacteria exposed to outer space conditions – Results of the Lithopanspermia experiments

    Rosa de la Torre;Leopoldo G. Sancho;Gerda Horneck;Asunción de los Ríos

  • Microbial diversity and the presence of algae in halite endolithic communities are correlated to atmospheric moisture in the hyper‐arid zone of the Atacama Desert

    Courtney K. Robinson;Jacek Wierzchos;Celeste Black;Alexander Crits-Christoph

  • Adaptation strategies of endolithic chlorophototrophs to survive the hyperarid and extreme solar radiation environment of the Atacama Desert

    Jacek Wierzchos;Jocelyne DiRuggiero;Petr Vítek;Octavio Artieda

  • Acid microenvironments in microbial biofilms of antarctic endolithic microecosystems.

    Asunción de los Ríos;Jacek Wierzchos;Leopoldo G. Sancho;Carmen Ascaso

  • Microbial colonization of halite from the hyper-arid Atacama Desert studied by Raman spectroscopy

    P. Vítek;H. G. M. Edwards;J. Jehlička;C. Ascaso

  • Comparative analysis of the microbial communities inhabiting halite evaporites of the Atacama Desert

    de Los Ríos A;Valea S;Ascaso C;Davila A

  • Functional interactions of archaea, bacteria and viruses in a hypersaline endolithic community.

    Alexander Crits-Christoph;Diego R. Gelsinger;Bing Ma;Jacek Wierzchos

  • Morphological and Chemical Features of Bioweathered Granitic Biotite Induced by Lichen Activity

    Jacek Wierzchos;Carmen Ascaso

  • Life at the edge: endolithic cyanobacteria in halite rocks from the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert

    Jacek Wierzchos;Carmen Ascaso;Asunción de los Ríos;C.P. Mckay

  • Chains of Magnetite Crystals in the Meteorite ALH84001: Evidence of Biological Origin

    E. I. Friedmann;J. Wierzchos;C. Ascaso;M. Winklhofer

Frequent Co-Authors

Carmen Ascaso
Carmen Ascaso Spanish National Research Council
Alfonso F. Davila
Alfonso F. Davila Ames Research Center
Leopoldo G. Sancho
Leopoldo G. Sancho Complutense University of Madrid
Alberto G. Fairén
Alberto G. Fairén Cornell University
Sergio Pérez-Ortega
Sergio Pérez-Ortega Real Jardín Botánico
Christopher P. McKay
Christopher P. McKay Ames Research Center
Kenneth H. Nealson
Kenneth H. Nealson University of Southern California
Howell G. M. Edwards
Howell G. M. Edwards University of Bradford
Martin Grube
Martin Grube University of Graz
Jacques Ravel
Jacques Ravel University of Maryland, Baltimore

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