Abstract 1987 Physical and Mechanistic Characterization of Tardigrade Cryptobiotic States in Response to Environmental Stressors

Tardigrades are segmented eight-legged semi-microscopic invertebrates, known for their ability to survive a wide array of stressful conditions, including freezing temperatures, chemical exposure, and osmotic stress. Tardigrades extremo-tolerance is, in large part, due to their ability to decrease metabolic processes and enter a quasi-stasis known as cryptobiosis. Although documentation of tardigrades survival in stressful conditions is widespread, there are fewer investigations into the mechanisms and characteristics of cryptobiosis.