| Hypogastrura nivicola | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Collembola |
| Order: | Poduromorpha |
| Family: | Hypogastruridae |
| Genus: | Hypogastrura |
| Species: | H. nivicola |
| Binomial name | |
| Hypogastrura nivicola (Fitch, 1846) | |
Hypogastrura nivicola is a species of dark blue springtail. Its English name in the United States is snow flea, but there are also additional springtails [1] (and insects) called by that name. They are often seen jumping about on the surface of snow on a warm winter's day in North America. [2]
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Researchers at Queen's University (Canada) have sequenced and synthesised the anti-freeze-like protein that allows H. nivicola to operate in sub-zero environments, [3] and found it to be glycine-rich. There are hopes that similar proteins may be useful for storing transplant organs and for producing better ice cream. [4] By preventing the formation of ice crystals in tissues, organs could be stored at lower temperatures, increasing the time of their viability outside a living body. Unlike proteins with similar functions in other species, the protein found in H. nivicola breaks down easily at higher temperatures. [5]
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