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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://io9.com/whoa-this-leech-survived-after-being-in-liquid-nitroge-1507557643/@georgedvorsky">http://io9.com/whoa-this-leech-survived-after-being-in-liquid-nitroge-1507557643/@georgedvorsky</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=first-text style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:14.25pt;margin-left:0in;background:whitesmoke'><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'>Scientists have learned that a common parasite of sea turtles is capable of surviving ridiculously cold temperatures — a finding that could lead to the development of advanced cryopreservation techniques.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:14.25pt;margin-left:0in;background:whitesmoke;box-sizing: border-box;max-width: 100%;word-break:break-word;orphans: auto;text-align:start;widows: auto;-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;word-spacing:0px'><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'>Okay, gotta say, this thing's really weird. Most organisms cannot survive exposure to temperatures below 0°C, let alone temperatures as low as liquid nitrogen. Once you get below the freezing point the water in the cells cause way too much damage, typically resulting in cell death.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:14.25pt;margin-left:0in;background:whitesmoke;box-sizing: border-box;max-width: 100%;word-break:break-word;orphans: auto;text-align:start;widows: auto;-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;word-spacing:0px'><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'>What's even weirder is that this leech,</span><span class=apple-converted-space><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'> </span></span><em><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'>Ozobranchus jantseanus</span></em><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'>, parasitizes sea turtles that swim in waters no colder than −2 to −4°C, and for more longer than 11 days. "It is likely," write the researchers in their study, "that this cryotolerant ability has arisen in response to some as yet unclarified adaptation."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:14.25pt;margin-left:0in;background:whitesmoke;box-sizing: border-box;max-width: 100%;word-break:break-word;orphans: auto;text-align:start;widows: auto;-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;word-spacing:0px'><span style='font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#222222'>And an extreme adaptation is it. The leech can survive exposure to super-low temperatures by storage in liquid nitrogen (−196°C) for 24 hours, as well as long-term storage at temperatures as low as −90°C for up to 32 months. The leech is also capable of enduring repeated freeze-thaw cycles in the temperature range 20°C to −100°C and then back to 20°C…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Now THAT’s cool.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>spike<o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>