# Deciphering the Role of Trehalose in Chroococcidiopsis sp. 029’s High-Desiccation Resistance: Sequence Determination, Structural Modelling and Simulative Analysis of the 30S Ribosomal Subunit

## TL;DR

This study explores how trehalose helps a desert cyanobacterium survive extreme dryness by protecting its ribosomes.

## Contribution

The study provides atomistic evidence of trehalose's protective role in the 30S ribosomal subunit during desiccation.

## Key findings

- Trehalose forms an enveloping shell around the ribosomal subunit.
- Trehalose stabilizes the ribosomal structure by replacing water molecules.
- Trehalose ensures structural integrity during desiccation, enabling protein synthesis upon rehydration.

## Abstract

Desert strains of the genus Chroococcidiopsis are among the most desiccation-resistant cyanobacteria capable of anhydrobiosis. The accumulation of two sugars, sucrose and trehalose, facilitates the entrance of anhydrobiotes into a reversible state of dormancy by stabilizing cellular components upon water removal. This study aimed to evaluate, at the atomistic level, the role of trehalose in desiccation resistance by using as a model system the 30S ribosomal subunit of the desert cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis sp. 029. Molecular dynamic simulations provided atomistic evidence regarding its protective role on the 30S molecular structure. Trehalose forms an enveloping shell around the ribosomal subunit and stabilizes the structures through a network of direct interactions. The simulation confirmed that trehalose actively interacts with the 30S ribosomal subunit and that, by replacing water molecules, it ensures ribosomal structural integrity during desiccation, thus enabling protein synthesis to be carried out upon rehydration.