Written by Evien Cheng | Edited by Aishah Mahmoud
Photo by [1]. This resilience of tardigrades can be important to drug research! Scientists aim to replicate the tardigrade’s resistance by exposing model organisms to drugs that allow them to reproduce tardigrades’ toughness [2]. Upon successful completion of these experiments, the research done with tardigrades can be applied even further to developing longer-lasting drugs in the pharmaceutical industries.
Tardigrades have the potential to create DNA-protecting drugs. Tardigrades produce a protein called “damage suppressor protein,” or Dsup, which protects DNA from radiation damage. Smaller doses of radiation over 2-3 gray (Gy) can cause radiation burns on human skin while larger doses of about 10-20 Gy could lead to cancer or cardiovascular diseases. Miraculously, tardigrades can tolerate being exposed to 4,000 Gy of radiation [2]. This immensely high resistance threshold is vital in protecting DNA from damage as radiation significantly damages DNA structure by breaking bonds holding DNA strands together. Under lab settings, when cells producing Dsup are subjected to radiation, they are found to have 17% less damaged DNA content in a cell [2]. Well-protected DNA decreases chances of mutations, which leads to cancerous growth and cell death.
Another research focus being explored in tardigrades is using certain molecules to prolong drug shelf life. One of these molecules of interest is a sugar complex called trehalose. Trehalose works by stabilizing a protein called Factor VIII [4]. Medical patients that lack the Factor VIII protein have a disease called hemophilia A, which prevents appropriate blood clotting, thus causing excessive bleeding. Hence, trehalose is used to treat hemophilia A. Later after this discovery, trehalose was used to develop a new model molecule, pTrMA, which preserved insulin medication at temperatures that close to 200°F. After nearly one year in storage, about 87% of the batch of insulin combined with pTrMA survived while only 8% of the batch of solely insulin survived [3]. Medications treated with pTrMA are able to withstand higher temperatures, meaning that the medication is less likely to degrade in room temperature conditions or require refrigeration. pTrMA’s stabilization powers improves the shelf life of medication, which helps patients save money, cuts waste, and prevents toxicity or bacterial growth from expired medication.
It is enthralling to see how tardigrade research develops in the near future to expand the pharmaceutical drug industry and improve the lives of patients. While there may be concerns about extracting small molecules from tardigrades and producing them on a larger scale, it is a novel approach to pharmaceutical research. Not only can tardigrade research possibly bring about advances in protecting DNA from radiation, it has also produced promising results in improving shelf life and stability of medication in the market. The future of drug development may all be because thanks to our microscopic bear friends!
References:
- Weronika E., Łukasz, K. (2016). Tardigrades in Space Research – Past and Future. Origins of Life and Evolution of the Biosphere, 47:545-553.
- Kasianchuk N., Rzymski P., Kaczmarek Ł. (2023). The biomedical potential of tardigrade proteins: A review. Biomed Pharmacother, 158:114063.
- Lewis, Wayne. “How the secrets of the ‘water bear’ could improve lifesaving drugs like insulin.” UCLA Newsroom, 2022, https://newsroom.ucla.edu/stories/water-bear-secret-to-improving-lifesaving-medications. Accessed 07 Nov. 2023.
- Lanese, Nicoletta. “Tardigrade proteins could help stabilize drugs without refrigeration, scientists say.” Livescience, 2023, https://www.livescience.com/tardigrade-proteins-could-help-stabilize-drugs-without-refrigeration-scientists-say. Accessed 07 Nov. 2023.