Hypogastrura nivicola
Hypogastrura nivicola is a species of dark blue springtail. Its English name is snow flea, but there are also insects called by that name. They are often seen jumping about on the surface of snow on a warm winter day in North America.
Researchers at Queen's University have sequenced and synthesised the anti-freeze-like protein that allows H. nivicola to operate in sub-zero environments, and found it to be glycine-rich, unlike any previously known protein. There are hopes that similar proteins may be useful for storing transplant organs and for producing better ice cream. By preventing the formation of ice crystals in tissues, organs could be stored at lower temperatures, increasing the time of their viability outside a living body. Unlike proteins with similar functions in other species, the protein found in H. nivicola breaks down easily at higher temperatures.
