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Mechanisms underlying insect freeze tolerance.

Jantina Toxopeus¹, Brent J Sinclair¹

¹Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, 1151 Richmond Street N, London, ON, N6A 5B7, Canada.

Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society

|May 12, 2018

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Freeze tolerance allows insects to survive ice formation, a complex process involving managing ice, preventing damage, and restoring function. This strategy evolved in insects already adapted to cold or dehydration.

Keywords:

cold tolerance cryopreservation evolution freeze tolerance ice insects mechanisms overwintering physiology thermal biology

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Area of Science:

Insect physiology
Cryobiology
Evolutionary biology

Background:

Freeze tolerance, the ability to survive internal ice formation, has evolved multiple times in insects.
Surviving freezing presents challenges like cellular dehydration, mechanical damage, and metabolic limitations.
No single molecule has been identified as essential for freeze tolerance.

Purpose of the Study:

To frame freeze tolerance as a process that insects must survive.
To hypothesize mechanisms by which freeze-tolerant insects withstand cooling, freezing, and thawing.
To guide future research on insect freeze tolerance.

Main Methods:

Literature review and synthesis of existing knowledge on insect freeze tolerance.
Framing freeze tolerance as a multi-stage process (cooling, freezing, thawing).
Hypothesizing key physiological and biochemical strategies employed by freeze-tolerant insects.

Main Results:

Freeze tolerance requires insects to control ice, prevent/repair damage, manage metabolism during freezing, and restore function post-thaw.
Many protective molecules in freeze-tolerant insects are also found in cold- and desiccation-tolerant species.
Freeze tolerance likely evolved in insects pre-adapted to cold or dehydration.

Conclusions:

A process-focused approach is crucial for understanding insect freeze tolerance.
Future research should integrate appropriate techniques and model organisms.
Understanding the mechanisms of freeze tolerance can be advanced through hypothesis-driven studies.