Molecular adaptations in Antarctic fish and bacteria.

Marine organisms, living in the cold waters of the Southern Ocean, are exposed to high oxygen concentrations. Cold-adapted organisms have developed networks of defence mechanisms to protect themselves against oxidative stress. The dominant suborder Notothenioidei of the Southern Ocean is one of the most interesting models, within vertebrates, to study the evolutionary biological responses to extreme environment. Within bacteria, the psychrophilic Antarctic bacterium Pseudoalteromonas haloplanktis TAC125 gives the opportunity to explore the cellular strategies adopted in vivo by cold-adapted microorganisms to cope with cold and high oxygen concentration. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying how a range of Antarctic organisms have responded to climate change in the past will enable predictions as to how they and other species will adapt to global climate change, in terms of physiological function, distribution patterns and ecosystem balance.