Unique proteins give water bears extreme drought tolerance

Water bear protein protects from dessication

Source: T C Boothby

Glassy proteins allow tardigrades to survive being dried out for more than a decade

They’re often touted as the toughest animal on the planet. Tardigrades – also known as water bears – can survive extremes of cold, heat and radiation, and even the vacuum of space. Now, scientists in the US have identified a set of proteins unique to the creatures that that help keep them alive and unharmed when they are dried out – even if the desiccation lasts for years.