Abstract 1499 Physical and Mechanistic Characterization of Tardigrade Cryptobiotic States in Response to Environmental Stressors

Tardigrades are eight-legged semi-microscopic invertebrates renowned for their ability to survive a wide array of stressful environmental conditions, including the vacuum of space and being shot out of a gun. This incredible extremo-tolerance is largely attributable to their ability to enter a quasi-stasis state, termed cryptobiosis. While the ability of tardigrades to survive environmental stress is well documented, there is little work investigating the concentration dependence of cryptobiosis induction or stressor-dependent morphological changes during that induction. Herein, the concentration dependence of cryptobiosis induction and survival in the tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris in response to osmotic (sucrose and CaCl2) and chemical (H2O2) stressors is probed. Further, the physiological changes occurring in response to osmotic, chemical, and cryogenic stress are documented using confocal microscopy. We report that the concentration of applied stressors has a significant effect on both the induction and survival of cryptobioses that tardigrades demonstrate apparent physiological differences across stressors. This work provided a basis for future investigations aiming to probe tardigrade cryptobioses. This material is based upon work work supported by a National Science Foundation Award. It is supported by the NASA West Virginia Space Grant Consortium, the Marshall University Discovery Grant and Marshall University Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Program. This is in collaboration with students and faculty of the Hicks Lab at UNC Chapel Hill.