Tardigrade Proteins Can Keep Medicine Stable Without Refrigeration [Study]

Tardigrade proteins have been found by scientists to have the potential to keep medicine stable without refrigeration, based on a new study.

A number of today's medicine are dependent on being stored under cold temperatures to maintain their quality and effectiveness.

Now, researchers from the University of Wyoming (UW) made a breakthrough of using the tardigrade's ability to withstand extreme conditions towards life-saving treatments.

Tardigrade Proteins

In a news release on March 20, the UW scientists made a breakthrough for human health using tardigrade proteins and making medicinal treatments available to people where refrigeration is not always possible.

In spite of the limited application of these proteins, the researchers show that they can be used stabilize medicine for people with hemophilia and other conditions.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hemophilia is a typically inherited bleeding disorder in which blood clots are not working the way they should be.

Persons with the said disorder experience spontaneous, excessive bleeding after an injury or surgery.

Blood clotting does not work at this stage due to the lack of the protein factor VIII, which is often used to treat bleeding disorder, a result of a genetic mutation.

Anhydrobiosis

In the UW study published in the journal Scientific Reports on March 20, the research team conducted an experimentation led to their conclusion towards stabilizing human blood clotting protein factor VIII in a dry state, by integrating the tardigrade protein.

The said protein came from the ability of tardigrades to dry themselves and enter a state of suspended animation called anhydrobiosis.

During this state, the water bears can withstand cold temperatures as low as minus 200 degrees Celsius (328 degrees Fahrenheit) and as hot as 148.9 degrees Celsius (300 degrees Fahrenheit), Live Science summarized.

In particular, the team extracted two substances from the microscopic animal: a sugar called trehalose and a protein known as cytoplasmic abundant heat soluble, also known as CAHS D.

Both substances help preserve the tardigrade's body during the said biological process to survive and be rehydrated later on.

The team made alterations to the substances' properties to enable them to boost and stabilize factor VIII.

The research paper and the UW news release both mentioned that CAHS D is more suitable for the treatment.

This comes after putting the tardigrade protein-driven factor VIII into different extreme temperatures and conditions.

What are Tardigrades?

Tardigrades are microscopic animals that are known for surviving extremely hot or cold environments, as well as the vacuum of space, according to previous scientific reports.

Also called as water bears or moss piglets, the six-legged tiny creatures are invertebrates belonging to the phylum Tardigrada and they are reportedly related to arthropods and nematodes.

Tardigrades have a physical feature of a cross breed between a badger and a caterpillar that moves like they are made of jelly.

Invisible to the naked eye, one needs a microscope to see them fully, with a size smaller than a dot mark from a pencil, according to the Arizona State University.