Heat shock proteins and thermoresistance in lizards

Abstract

The synthesis of heat shock proteins (hsps) at normal physiological and elevated temperatures has been correlated with the natural adaptation of an organism to heat in nine lizard species studied. These species differ drastically by their adaptation to elevated temperature and represent a spectrum of forms isolated from various geographical regions of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The synthesis of hsps belonging to the hsp70 family and their correspondent mRNAs have been compared at different temperature regimes. This analysis has shown that lizards inhabiting the Middle Asia deserts are characterized by a higher content of hsp70-like proteins at normal physiological temperatures (2- to 5-fold differences) when compared with the forms from central and northern regions of the European part of the Union of Soviet Socialistic Republics. Analysis of hsp70 mRNA at different temperatures substantiated these observations, showing evident correlation between adaptation of a given form to hyperthermia and the quantity of hsp70 mRNA in the cells under non-heat-shock conditions. The results obtained with a wide spectrum of ecologically different lizard species, coupled with other relevant data, enable us to propose a general rule applicable to poikilothermic organisms. This rule postulates the direct correlation between the characteristic temperature of the ecological niche of a given species and the amount of hsp70-like proteins in the cells at normal temperature.