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Cell Biology of the Tardigrades: Current Knowledge and Perspectives

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Evo-Devo: Non-model Species in Cell and Developmental Biology

Part of the book series: Results and Problems in Cell Differentiation ((RESULTS,volume 68))

Abstract

The invertebrate phylum Tardigrada has received much attention for containing species adapted to the most challenging environmental conditions where an ability to survive complete desiccation or freezing in a cryptobiotic state is necessary for persistence. Although research on tardigrades has a long history, the last decade has seen a dramatic increase in molecular biological (“omics”) studies, most of them with the aim to reveal the biochemical mechanisms behind desiccation tolerance of tardigrades. Several other aspects of tardigrade cell biology have been studied, and we review some of them, including karyology, embryology, the role of storage cells, and the question of whether tardigrades are eutelic animals. We also review some of the theories about how anhydrobiotic organisms are able to maintain cell integrity under dry conditions, and our current knowledge on the role of vitrification and DNA protection and repair. Many aspects of tardigrade stress tolerance have relevance for human medicine, and the first transfers of tardigrade stress genes to human cells have now appeared. We expect this field to develop rapidly in the coming years, as more genomic information becomes available. However, many basic cell biological aspects remain to be investigated, such as immunology, cell cycle kinetics, cell metabolism, and culturing of tardigrade cells. Such development will be necessary to allow tardigrades to move from a nonmodel organism position to a true model organism with interesting associations with the current models C. elegans and D. melanogaster.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The species referred to Hypsibius dujardini in many studies reviewed in this chapter originates from the same strain/population collected from a pond in England, and has recently been described by Gąsiorek et al. (2018) as a new species, Hypsibius exemplaris, distinguished from the originally described species Hypsibius dujardini. In this chapter, we have chosen to consistently use the new name, H. exemplaris, although the publications referred to use H. dujardini.

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  1. Department of Environmental Science and Bioscience, Kristianstad University, Kristianstad, Sweden

    K. Ingemar Jönsson, Ingvar Holm & Helena Tassidis

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Correspondence to K. Ingemar Jönsson .

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  1. Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland

    Waclaw Tworzydlo

  2. Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland

    Szczepan M. Bilinski

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Jönsson, K.I., Holm, I., Tassidis, H. (2019). Cell Biology of the Tardigrades: Current Knowledge and Perspectives. In: Tworzydlo, W., Bilinski, S. (eds) Evo-Devo: Non-model Species in Cell and Developmental Biology. Results and Problems in Cell Differentiation, vol 68. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23459-1_10

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