Cold-Adapted Microorganisms: Survival Strategies and Biotechnological Significance

Abstract

Thermal stress either cold or heat stress is one of the major factors that influence microorganisms, and to survive from these adverse conditions, microorganisms have to adapt different survival strategies. Some major survival strategies adapted by the microorganisms in response to cold stress are metabolic adaptations, change in cell membrane structure and functions such as membrane fluidity, molecular adaptations that includes change in gene expression, production of cold-adaptive enzymes, and the production of compounds like cryoprotectants that protects microorganisms from these adverse effects. These survival strategies represent bacterial adaptations, and those microorganisms that have potential to adapt better in these survival conditions are most likely to survive in cold stress. Cold-adaptive microorganisms possess high survival instincts and simultaneously offer numerous advantages in pursuits of biotechnological advances. This advancement includes production of cold-adaptive enzymes and proteins, and these proteins and enzymes are very important for commercial purpose that contribute to Indian economy too.Hemant Dasila and Damini Maithani contributed equally with all other contributors.

The Microbiome of Things: Appliances, Machines, and Devices Hosting Artificial Niche-Adapted Microbial Communities

“…Thermal and cold resistance strategies, including expression of particular proteins [e.g., cold/heat shock proteins (CSPs/HSPs) and antifreeze proteins (AFPs)], biosynthesis of compatible solutes, structural adjustment of enzymes, and membrane fluidity, are survival mechanisms that allow microbial cells to resist extreme temperatures [ 87 , 88 ]. For survival under thermal stress, the MoT species of the genera Kocuria , Methylobacterium , Bacillus , Pseudomonas , Acinetobacter , Micrococcus , Moraxella , and Sphingomonas have developed at least one of those adaptation mechanisms [ 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 ].…”

Physiology of anammox adaptation to low temperatures and promising biomarkers: A review

“…Second is the overexpression of cold shock proteins such as nucleic-acid-binding proteins (i.e., CspA), chaperones (i.e., GroEL, DnaK) (Sharma et al, 2022). Related proteins can be expressed at milder sub-optimal temperatures (cold acclimation proteins or Caps) (Dasila et al, 2022). Another mechanism involves compatible solutes acting as "chemical chaperones".…”

A Novel Extracellular Catalase Produced by the Antarctic Filamentous Fungus Penicillium Rubens III11-2

“…Cold-adapted microorganisms have evolved different strategies to adapt to low temperatures [1][2][3]. The synthesis of temperature-sensitive (cold-active, CA) enzymes [4][5][6], the modification of lipid composition to preserve cell membrane fluidity [7], the existence of RNA chaperones that prevent the formation of undesirable RNA secondary structures [8,9], the synthesis of antifreeze proteins [10][11][12], and other processes are all part of adaptation.…”