Mitochondrial alternative oxidase contributes to successful tardigrade anhydrobiosis

Wojciechowska, Daria; Karachitos, Andonis; Roszkowska, Milena; Rzeźniczak, Wiktor; Sobkowiak, Robert; Kaczmarek, Łukasz; Kosicki, Jakub Z.; Kmita, Hanna

doi:10.1186/s12983-021-00400-5

Cited by 14 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…Moreover, H . exemplaris might provide valuable data concerning AOX involvement in efficient protection against stress factors affecting mitochondria [ 39 ]. This also applies to aging as the mean lifespan under laboratory conditions of about two months makes the species suitable for studies of AOX activity role in aging.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris has the active mitochondrial alternative oxidase that could be studied at animal organismal level

et al. 2021

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Mitochondrial alternative oxidase (AOX) is predicted to be present in mitochondria of several invertebrate taxa including tardigrades. Independently of the reason concerning the enzyme occurrence in animal mitochondria, expression of AOX in human mitochondria is regarded as a potential therapeutic strategy. Till now, relevant data were obtained due to heterologous AOX expression in cells and animals without natively expressed AOX. Application of animals natively expressing AOX could importantly contribute to the research. Thus, we decided to investigate AOX activity in intact specimens of the tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris. We observed that H. exemplaris specimens’ tolerance to the blockage of the mitochondrial respiratory chain (MRC) cytochrome pathway was diminished in the presence of AOX inhibitor and the inhibitor-sensitive respiration enabled the tardigrade respiration under condition of the blockage. Importantly, these observations correlated with relevant changes of the mitochondrial inner membrane potential (Δψ) detected in intact animals. Moreover, detection of AOX at protein level required the MRC cytochrome pathway blockage. Overall, we demonstrated that AOX activity in tardigrades can be monitored by the animals’ behavior observation as well as by measurement of intact specimens’ whole-body respiration and Δψ. Furthermore, it is also possible to check the impact of the MRC cytochrome pathway blockage on AOX level as well as AOX inhibition in the absence of the blockage on animal functioning. Thus, H. exemplaris could be consider as a whole-animal model suitable to study AOX.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As we have recently shown for the tardigrade M . inceptum , BHAM can be described as an efficient inhibitor of tardigrade AOX [ 39 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris has the active mitochondrial alternative oxidase that could be studied at animal organismal level

et al. 2021

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“…Accordingly, the cells are described as the main form of energy storage, enabling a proper nutrient regime for different tissues as well as providing protection to tissues by producing protective metabolites [19,55,56]. Moreover, it has been shown that energetic support is also important during the tun stage [57]. Therefore, we assumed that tuns that were to survive should have had the correct ultrastructure of these cells, enabling their proper function also during/after rehydration.…”

Section: Typical Tun Appearance Does Not Rule Out Degeneration Of Sto...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Verification of Hypsibius exemplaris Gąsiorek et al., 2018 (Eutardigrada; Hypsibiidae) application in anhydrobiosis research

et al. 2022

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Anhydrobiosis is considered to be an adaptation of important applicative implications because it enables resistance to the lack of water. The phenomenon is still not well understood at molecular level. Thus, a good model invertebrate species for the research is required. The best known anhydrobiotic invertebrates are tardigrades (Tardigrada), considered to be toughest animals in the world. Hypsibius. exemplaris is one of the best studied tardigrade species, with its name “exemplaris” referring to the widespread use of the species as a laboratory model for various types of research. However, available data suggest that anhydrobiotic capability of the species may be overestimated. Therefore, we determined anhydrobiosis survival by Hys. exemplaris specimens using three different anhydrobiosis protocols. We also checked ultrastructure of storage cells within formed dormant structures (tuns) that has not been studied yet for Hys. exemplaris. These cells are known to support energetic requirements of anhydrobiosis. The obtained results indicate that Hys. exemplaris appears not to be a good model species for anhydrobiosis research.

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“…These studies primarily focused on testing the survival of tardigrades in environmental extremes, including radiation, changes in humidity, and high temperatures, or repeated anhydrobiosis at different life stages. The studies included research on DNA repair mechanisms and stress proteins synthesis on the basis of genomic analyses [ 21 , 25 , 27 , 29 , 33 – 35 , 37 – 41 , 45 , 46 , 48 , 51 , 55 , 59 , 60 ]. The conclusion from these studies shows that different tardigrade species have a high degree (80–90%) of survival after short periods of anhydrobiosis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…exemplaris , a very high survival rate (~ 90%) was reported for Mil . inceptum after 30 and 60 days in anhydrobiosis [ 41 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How long can tardigrades survive in the anhydrobiotic state? A search for tardigrade anhydrobiosis patterns

et al. 2023

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Anhydrobiosis is a desiccation tolerance that denotes the ability to survive almost complete dehydration without sustaining damage. The knowledge on the survival capacity of various tardigrade species in anhydrobiosis is still very limited. Our research compares anhydrobiotic capacities of four tardigrade species from different genera, i.e. Echiniscus testudo, Paramacrobiotus experimentalis, Pseudohexapodibius degenerans and Macrobiotus pseudohufelandi, whose feeding behavior and occupied habitats are different. Additionally, in the case of Ech. testudo, we analyzed two populations: one urban and one from a natural habitat. The observed tardigrade species displayed clear differences in their anhydrobiotic capacity, which appear to be determined by the habitat rather than nutritional behavior of species sharing the same habitat type. The results also indicate that the longer the state of anhydrobiosis lasts, the more time the animals need to return to activity.

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Mitochondrial alternative oxidase contributes to successful tardigrade anhydrobiosis

Cited by 14 publications

References 60 publications

The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris has the active mitochondrial alternative oxidase that could be studied at animal organismal level

The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris has the active mitochondrial alternative oxidase that could be studied at animal organismal level

Verification of Hypsibius exemplaris Gąsiorek et al., 2018 (Eutardigrada; Hypsibiidae) application in anhydrobiosis research

How long can tardigrades survive in the anhydrobiotic state? A search for tardigrade anhydrobiosis patterns

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