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Authors of the research have expressed hope that their insights could be harnessed to help protect astronauts from radiation during various space missions.
These creatures can survive radiation levels nearly 1,000 times higher than the lethal dose for humans. (Photo Credits: X)
A team of researchers has sequenced the genome of a newly discovered species of tardigrades (Hypsibius henanensis), identifying how they are able to withstand high doses of radiation.
Tardigrades are quite popular for their ability to survive in extreme environments. Also known as water bears, these creatures have the capability to survive radiation levels nearly 1,000 times higher than the lethal dose for humans. While there are nearly 1,500 species of tardigrade, only a handful of them have been studied well, Nature reported.
To learn more about its remarkable abilities, a team of scientists have sequenced the genome of one of the new species, showing some of the molecular mechanisms that give them such extraordinary resilience. The study, titled “Multi-omics landscape and molecular basis of radiation tolerance in a tardigrade,” was published in Science. These scientists are affiliated with several institutions in China.
The study identifies thousands of tardigrade genes, which become more active once it is exposed to radiation. It shows how the microscopic animals’ DNA is protected from damage that radiation causes, besides repairing any breaks that do occur.
The authors of the research are hopeful that these insights might one day be harnessed to help protect astronauts from radiation during various space missions as well as clean up nuclear pollution and improve cancer treatment.
“This discovery may help improve the stress tolerance of human cells, benefiting patients undergoing radiation therapy,” Lingqiang Zhang, co-author of the study and a molecular and cellular biologist at the Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, told Nature.
The new species of tardigrade was discovered by Zhang and his team as they collected moss samples from Funiu Mountain in China’s Henan province.
Under the microscope, they learnt about the previously undocumented species of tardigrade and later named it “Hypsibius henanensis”. Later a genome sequencing highlighted that this species had a total of 14,701 genes, out of which 30% was unique to tardigrades.
As the researchers exposed Hypsibius henanensis to radiation doses of 200 and 2,000 grays, they witnessed 2,801 genes in it that were involved in DNA repair along with cell division and immune responses.
Further, the research team estimates that 0.5 to 3.1% of the tardigrade’s genes have been acquired from other organisms — a process called horizontal gene transfer.
In particular, the study found three major factors that help it survive exposure to radiation. The first was its ability to repair the DNA even after it gets damaged by radiation.
The second involves a gene that got switched on once it got exposed to radiation. This resulted in the generation of two proteins “known to be important for mitochondrial synthesis of ATP—in tardigrades, it appears they also help with DNA repair,” Phys.org reported.
The last one was the creature’s ability to minimise damage through producing a large number of proteins further serving as effective antioxidants.
