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Temperature downshift induces antioxidant response in fungi isolated from Antarctica

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Abstract

Although investigators have been studying the cold-shock response in a variety of organisms for the last two decades or more, comparatively little is known about the difference between antioxidant cell response to cold stress in Antarctic and temperate microorganisms. The change of environmental temperature, which is one of the most common stresses, could be crucial for their use in the biotechnological industry and in ecological research. We compared the effect of short-term temperature downshift on antioxidant cell response in Antarctic and temperate fungi belonging to the genus Penicillium. Our study showed that downshift from an optimal temperature to 15° or 6°C led to a cell response typical of oxidative stress: significant reduction of biomass production; increase in the levels of oxidative damaged proteins and accumulation of storage carbohydrates (glycogen and trehalose) in comparison to growth at optimal temperature. Cell response against cold stress includes also increase in the activities of SOD and CAT, which are key enzymes for directly scavenging reactive oxygen species. This response is more species-dependent than dependent on the degree of cold-shock. Antarctic psychrotolerant strain Penicillium olsonii p14 that is adapted to life in extremely cold conditions demonstrated enhanced tolerance to temperature downshift in comparison with both mesophilic strains (Antarctic Penicillium waksmanii m12 and temperate Penicillium sp. t35).

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Abbreviations

SOD:

Superoxide dismutase

CAT:

Catalase

ROS:

Reactive oxygen species

NBT:

Nitro-blue tetrazolium

DNPH:

2, 4-Dinitrophenylhydrazine

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the NCSI of the Ministry of Education and Science, Bulgaria (grant VU-B-205/06) to which we owe our sincere thanks.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Stephan Angeloff Institute of Microbiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Academician G. Bonchev 26, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria

    Yana G. Gocheva, Ekaterina Tz. Krumova, Lyudmila S. Slokoska, Jeny G. Miteva, Spassen V. Vassilev & Maria B. Angelova

  2. Dipartimento di Ecologia del Territorio, Università degli Studi di Pavia, Via S. Epifanio, 14 27100, Pavia, Italy

    Solveig Tosi

Authors
  1. Yana G. Gocheva
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  2. Solveig Tosi
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  3. Ekaterina Tz. Krumova
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  4. Lyudmila S. Slokoska
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  5. Jeny G. Miteva
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  6. Spassen V. Vassilev
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  7. Maria B. Angelova
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maria B. Angelova.

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Communicated by T. Matsunaga.

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Gocheva, Y.G., Tosi, S., Krumova, E.T. et al. Temperature downshift induces antioxidant response in fungi isolated from Antarctica. Extremophiles 13, 273–281 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00792-008-0215-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00792-008-0215-1

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