Tardigrade survival secret could save millions of lives.

Researchers at the University of Wyoming have successfully conducted experiments on the dry preservation of biological products using substances extracted from the organisms of tardigrades. The importance of the discovery can hardly be overestimated since it will allow keeping vital substances and medicines without freezing, just in a dried form – and almost indefinitely. This makes it possible to create their stocks and deliver them to places without energy for the operation of medical refrigerators – for example, to disaster zones or on the battlefield. In addition, tardigrades can fall into anabiosis with a critical loss of moisture in the body and quickly get out of it without damage. Analyzing the composition of proteins and sugar in their body, American scientists isolated heat-soluble cytosolic proteins and sugar trehalose. With a moisture deficit, these substances form gel-like threads that protect the cell structure from damage. When moisture is added, the strands disintegrate safely, avoiding cellular stress. The method has been successfully tested on the vital substance Coagulation Factor VIII (Antihemophilic Globulin). Scientists managed to stabilize it in dry form for ten weeks and then reuse it for its intended purpose. They are confident this technology can be adapted to many drugs and biologics.