International Project Will Explore How Molecular Evolution Enables Animals to Adapt to Extreme Cold

• The project will study the structure and function of temperature-sensitive proteins in animals adapted to different thermal environments, such as the woolly mammoth, the polar bear, and the Asian elephant.
• The Human Frontier Science Program promotes international collaboration in basic research, funding innovative projects focused on elucidating the mechanisms of living organisms.

The prestigious international organization Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP) has awarded a grant of 1.5 million dollars to researcher Félix Viana de la Iglesia, who leads the Sensory Transduction and Nociception laboratory at the Institute for Neurosciences (IN), a joint center of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Miguel Hernández University (UMH) of Elche. It is one of the 34 projects awarded in the 2024 call out of 730 applications submitted. Thanks to this funding, the researcher will be able to carry out a multidisciplinary study exploring the molecular mechanisms underlying cold perception in animals.

Using the power of evolutionary mechanisms as a key tool to understand biological processes, the project's goal is to uncover the molecular adaptations developed by living organisms to detect changes in environmental temperature, enabling them to initiate a series of physiological responses crucial for survival. To achieve this, they will analyze the genes that encode temperature-sensitive proteins in species that have evolved over millions of years in different thermal environments. Among these species are the extinct woolly mammoth, the polar bear, the Asian elephant, the penguin, and the snowy owl.

"Temperature changes determine many biological adaptations and animal behavior. However, while these biological changes are well-documented, we still don't know how they perceive temperature changes in their environment at the molecular level," explains Viana. This study will help to understand how different species have adapted to climate changes throughout evolutionary history: "We hypothesize that the sensitivity of cold receptors varies depending on the preferred thermal environment of each species," the researcher notes.

The body detects environmental temperature thanks to special proteins called TRP ion channels, which respond to temperature changes. These proteins, discovered by researchers David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian, Nobel Prize winners in Medicine and Physiology in 2021, are located in the skin nerve endings and enable the sensation of cold or heat. Among them, the TRPM8 protein acts as the primary cold sensor in mammals and birds, allowing them to perceive low temperatures and adapt their physiological responses to the environment.

The group led by Viana, along with researchers Ana Gomis and Elvira de la Peña, has been studying cold receptors for over 20 years at the Institute for Neurosciences and has extensive experience in advanced electrophysiological techniques. Among their current research interests is understanding the mechanisms that cause hypersensitivity to cold in certain peripheral neuropathies, both in cancer patients and in other conditions. "We believe that basic studies like this can help us better understand the pathogenic mechanisms in peripheral nerves and advance the development of new therapies," Viana states.

The project, which will be developed over three years, will involve collaboration with international experts in various disciplines. Love Dalén's team from the Department of Zoology at Stockholm University (Sweden) will contribute their expertise in paleogenomics by analyzing the DNA of extinct species like the woolly mammoth. Alexander Sobolevsky's laboratory from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at Columbia University (U.S.) will apply cryo-electron microscopy to study temperature-sensitive proteins at the atomic level. Finally, the group led by Carmen Domene from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Bath (UK) will bring their extensive experience in molecular simulations.

This multidisciplinary approach will enable the study of how protein structures change across different species and environments, providing a detailed understanding of the molecular mechanisms that allow animals to adapt to extreme conditions. Additionally, the project incorporates an educational component to maximize the benefits of this collaboration. "We aim to encourage early-career researchers to undertake secondments in the various laboratories involved in the consortium, allowing them to learn cutting-edge techniques firsthand," emphasizes Viana.

The Human Frontier Science Program grants promote international collaboration in basic research, focusing on the complex mechanisms of living organisms. This initiative supports innovative and high-risk projects that combine the expertise of research teams from at least two different countries.

Source: Institute for Neurosciences CSIC-UMH (in.comunicacion@umh.es)

Provided by Miguel Hernandez University of Elche