Water is essential to Life. But…
Biology is wet: cellular metabolism can only occur when cells are hydrated. Thus, organisms must have evolved mechanisms to sense water availability and to respond to its absence to ensure survival. Compellingly, certain organisms have evolved ways to temporarily survive desiccation (i.e., the near-complete absence of water) and are showing us the limits of biology.
Since proteins need water to remain soluble and folded, the adaptations that desiccation-tolerant organisms have evolved could help us bolster proteostasis and ameliorate protein aggregation in human disease. These studies also have direct applications to agriculture and interplanetary travel.
Together with collaborators we are exploring the molecular mechanisms of water sensing and desiccation tolerance.
Selected publications
Dorone Y*, Boeynaems S*, Jin B, Bossi F, Flores E, Lazarus E, Michiels E, De Decker M, Baatsen P, Holehouse AS, Sukenik S, Gitler AD, Rhee SY. A prion-like protein regulator of seed germination undergoes hydration-dependent phase separation. Cell 2021, vol. 184(16), p. 4284-4298. co-first
featured on the cover
Romero-Perez PS*, Dorone Y*, Flores E, Sukenik S#, Boeynaems S#. When phased without water: biophysics of cellular desiccation, from biomolecules to condensates. Chemical Reviews 2023, vol. 123(14), 9010-9035. co-corresponding
Marks RA, Ekwealor JBT, Artur MAS, Bondi L, Boothby TC, Carmo OMS, Centeno DC, Coe KK, Dace HJW, Field S, Hutt A, Porembski S, Thalhammer A, van der Pas L, Wood AJ, Alpert P, Bartels D, Boeynaems S, Datar MN, Giese T, Seidou WI, Kirchner SM, Köhler J, Kumara UGVSS, Kyung J, Lyall R, Mishler BD, Ndongmo JBVT, Otegui MS, Reddy V, Rexroth J, Tebele SM, VanBuren R, Verdier J, Vothknecht UC, Wittenberg MF, Zokov E, Oliver MJ, Rhee SY. Life on the dry side: a roadmap to understanding desiccation tolerance and accelerating translational applications. Nature Communications 2025, vol. 16, 3284.