https://english.news.cn/20260606/de8eff009a94407c8eeeb1fdab13d675/c.html
A joint research led by the CAS Institute of Oceanology in collaboration with the Hong Kong-based Chinese University of Hong Kong and Northwestern Polytechnical University in Xi’an deciphered the mechanism of ultra-long starvation tolerance in deep-sea isopods and provides an important paradigm for understanding how life balances growth and survival in extreme environments.
The deep sea is cold, dark, and almost entirely devoid of reliable nutrition, making long-term survival a remarkable evolutionary feat. To survive the abyss, the isopod possesses an enormous stomach that occupies about two-thirds of its body and acts like a deep-freeze pantry, allowing it to gorge when food is available and store the haul for months or even years. Second, it maintains an exceptionally low basal metabolic rate, essentially putting itself on permanent energy-saving mode. Together, these traits turn opportunistic binge eating into an ultra-long energy reserve.
In addition, a key gene involved in this metabolic slowdown, named ND1, is not originally part of the isopod’s own genome. The isopod “hijacks” it from an external symbiotic bacterium through horizontal gene transfer.
To verify ND1’s function, the researchers inserted the gene into zebrafish, nematodes, and human cells in the lab. Under normal temperatures, the gene recipients burned energy faster and became less tolerant of starvation. However, under cold conditions that mimic the isopod’s deep-sea home, ND1 suppressed energy metabolism, reduced mitochondrial activity, and boosted starvation endurance in zebrafish by a remarkable 37 percent.
This temperature-dependent switch solves the so-called “energy paradox” — how can a giant animal with high energy demands survive where food is extremely scarce? The ND1 acts as a metabolic thermostat, fine-tuning energy burn in response to environmental conditions. It provides a solution to the trade-off between body size and food scarcity.
