Effect of high hydrostatic pressure on to life of the tiny animal tardigrade

Terrestrial tardigrade is known to show very strong anti-environmental character at a dehydrated state called tun state. It was reported to be alive after exposed to the hydrostatic pressure of 0.6 GPa, which was almost twice higher than the limit for most bacteria and multi-organisms. However, the limit of the hydrostatic pressure above which tardigrades cannot survive is unknown. We performed an experiment to put tardigrades into high hydrostatic pressure of 7.5 GPa, more than 10-times higher than investigated so far, and convinced that they can survive after exposure to 7.5 GPa for up to 12 h. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.