Glowing Snailfish with Antifreeze Proteins Found Immune from Cold Waters Beneath the Greenland Iceberg

A glowing snailfish (Liparis gibbus) with antifreeze proteins flowing through its veins has been found by scientists underneath a Greenland iceberg. The tadpole-like fish was reportedly seen swimming through the extremely cold waters between the northern Atlantic and western Arctic oceans. The discovery comes several decades after the said protein was first discovered from an Antarctic fish.

The discovery of the Greenland snailfish also leads to the first documented biofluorescent fish in the Arctic. Experts claim that it is rare for a marine animal to exhibit biofluorescence, the ability of some living organisms, including fish and insects, to absorb sunlight and reemit it as a different color. As a result, the unprecedented findings shed light on the complexity of marine life not known before.

Fish antifreeze proteins are biochemical properties found in the blood of some polar fish living in the icy or freezing waters of the Arctic and Antarctic polar regions. In the past, notothenioid fishes are known for possessing the antifreeze compound in their bloodstream which prevents them from freezing to death. In a molecular level, the proteins prevent molecular-level ice crystals from growing inside the body.

While residing in the field of animal biology, scientists have long sought the potential biological implications of the compounds to modern medicine. In particular, researchers may consider applying the antifreeze proteins for the preservation of some human organs under below-average temperatures. In addition, there is also a possibility to apply it on other animals in order to survive freezing temperatures.

Greenland Glowing Snailfish

Findings about the antifreeze and biofluorescent fish was published in the journal Evolutionary Bioinformatics on Tuesday, August 19. The study was led by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) that conducted a drilling operation in an iceberg off the Greenland coast, leading to the discovery of the glowing fish, which emits 'green antifreeze' from its veins.

The research confirms the fact that fish from both the northern and southern polar regions independently evolve these proteins, according co-author David Gruber, a research associate at AMH and a biology professor at Baruch College, who told Live Science.

Gruber also adds that antifreeze proteins stick to the surface of smaller ice crystal, slowing or preventing them from growing into fatally larger and dangerous crystals.

Biofluorescent Antifreeze Fish

Details of the discovered first biofluorescent Arctic fish was also published by the AMNH in the journal American Museum Novitates, where AMNH Curator John Sparks also emphasized the rarity of marine fluorescence in the Arctic.

In 2014, both Sparks and Gruber identified over 180 new fish species with biofluorescence, which can convert blue wavelengths into different colors green, red, or yellow light.

The presence of these biofluorescent Arctic fish would not be possible without the antifreeze proteins, which the National Science Foundation (NSF) describes to allow icefish live in subfreezing water through the compound's antifreeze molecules.

The NSF expounds the molecules plug the gaps in existing small ice crystals, preventing further ice crystal growth, as was mentioned earlier by the new study.