Physiological Investigations into Environmental Stress Response in the Hydrothermal Vent Polychaete Paralvinella sulfincola .

The most universal abiotic influence is temperature, and thus, thermotolerance, adaptations and response to thermal variation, is a fundamental factor shaping evolution. Prokaryotic life may have an upper thermal limit near 150°C; however, eukaryotic survival is limited to 50°C - the thermal maximum for sustained biosynthesis and homeostasis. My research focuses on understanding the physiological and biochemical factors that limit eukaryotic thermotolerance, by studying an organism near the upper limit of all eukaryotes: Paralvinella sulfincola.