M K Chattopadhyay is working as a Scientist at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, on cold adaptation in Antarctic bacteria.

Cold-adapted organisms are known to accumulate cryoprotective substances inside their cells. Glycine betaine is a bacterial cryoprotectant. It is believed to act by stabilizing cellular proteins and membranes at low temperature.

Life sustained at near-zero or sub-zero temperatures, poses a riddle to biologists. Diverse forms of living entities ranging from bacteria to insects, fishes, frogs and birds are known to survive in the extremely cold climate of polar regions and high mountain forests. A peep into the mechanisms of how they have adapted to withstand extreme cold can provide us valuable clues to some of the mysteries of life. The knowledge obtained from such investigations can also be exploited for cryopreservation of organs or tissues for medical purposes, and may also offer some tips to scientists striving to find a way to control food-borne pathogens that survive at low temperatures. Moreover, the physiology of cold-adapted organisms may help us evaluate the possibility of life on distant frozen planets.

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Address for Correspondence

M K Chattopadhyay
Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology
Uppal Road Hyderabad 500 007, India.
Email: mkc@ccmb.res.in