# Environmental Adaptation Strategies of Deep-Sea Fungi

**Authors:** Shuang Leng, Chang-Hong Liu

PMC · DOI: 10.3390/jof12030176 · 2026-02-28

## TL;DR

This review explores how deep-sea fungi survive extreme conditions like high pressure and low temperatures, offering insights into life in harsh environments and potential biotech applications.

## Contribution

The paper synthesizes recent findings on deep-sea fungal adaptation strategies, emphasizing their biotechnological potential.

## Key findings

- Deep-sea fungi have developed mechanisms to cope with hypoxia, high pressure, and low temperature.
- These adaptations reveal the resilience of life in extreme environments.
- The study highlights the potential of deep-sea fungi for biotechnological innovation.

## Abstract

Deep-sea ecosystems, characterized by extreme conditions such as high hydrostatic pressure, low temperatures, and oligotrophy, host phylogenetically and functionally diverse microbial communities. Among these, deep-sea fungi represent a critical but underexplored group whose survival strategies and adaptive mechanisms are emerging as a key research area. This review highlights recent advances in understanding how fungi adapt to deep-sea environments, focusing on strategies for managing three primary stressors: hypoxia, high pressure, and low temperature. These unique adaptations not only expand our understanding of the limits of life in extreme habitats but also offer valuable microbial resources for biotechnological innovation.

## Full-text entities

- **Genes:** superoxide dismutase [NCBI Gene 28891306], glutathione transferase [NCBI Gene 28885429], glutathione peroxidase [NCBI Gene 28890269]
- **Diseases:** HHP (MESH:D006973), cytotoxic (MESH:D064420), hypoxic (MESH:D002534), fungal (MESH:D009181), Hypoxia (MESH:D000860), injury to (MESH:D014947), A. sydowii DM1 (MESH:D009223)
- **Chemicals:** formate (MESH:C030544), acetate (MESH:D000085), polyols (MESH:C024617), polysaccharides (MESH:D011134), hydrocarbon (MESH:D006838), lipid (MESH:D008055), nitrogen (MESH:D009584), sugar (MESH:D000073893), nitrite (MESH:D009573), phosphorus (MESH:D010758), glycine (MESH:D005998), betaine (MESH:D001622), carbohydrate (MESH:D002241), PAHs (MESH:D011084), ammonium (MESH:D064751), ATP (MESH:D000255), melanin (MESH:D008543), trehalose (MESH:D014199), glutathione (MESH:D005978), amino acid (MESH:D000596), humic acids (MESH:D006812), glutamate (MESH:D018698), ethanol (MESH:D000431), oxygen (MESH:D010100), carbon (MESH:D002244), lactic acid (MESH:D019344), sulfate (MESH:D013431), unsaturated fatty acids (MESH:D005231), glycolipids (MESH:D006017), nitrate (MESH:D009566), ROS (MESH:D017382), EPS (-), lignin (MESH:D008031), methane (MESH:D008697), glucans (MESH:D005936), H2 (MESH:D006859)
- **Species:** Riftia pachyptila (giant tube worm, species) [taxon 6426], Fungi (kingdom) [taxon 4751], Alisea longicolla (species) [taxon 796580], Chaetomium madrasense (species) [taxon 1036254], Pseudocercosporella fraxini (species) [taxon 705920], Coprinellus micaceus (species) [taxon 71717], Oceanispirochaeta litoralis (species) [taxon 151], Daphnia (common water fleas, genus) [taxon 6668], Aureobasidium pullulans (species) [taxon 5580], Rhodotorula (genus) [taxon 5533], Aspergillus ruber (species) [taxon 396024], Oceanitis scuticella (species) [taxon 482891], Suillus (genus) [taxon 5379], Schizophyllum commune (species) [taxon 5334], Aspergillus ustus (species) [taxon 40382], Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606], Vibrio sp. (species) [taxon 678], Hirondellea gigas (species) [taxon 1518452], Xylaria (genus) [taxon 37991], Paradendryphiella arenariae (species) [taxon 156293], Alternaria sect. Alternaria (section) [taxon 2499237], Torulaspora (genus) [taxon 4948], Cadophora (genus) [taxon 210567], Cryptococcus (genus) [taxon 79213], Aeromonas sp. (species) [taxon 647], Penicillium (genus) [taxon 5073], Ophioplinthaca abyssalis (species) [taxon 876692], Cladosporium sp. (species) [taxon 1707700], Bacteria Latreille et al. 1825 (Bacteria stick insect, genus) [taxon 629395], Trichosporon (genus) [taxon 5552], Purpureocillium lilacinum (species) [taxon 33203], Exophiala (genus) [taxon 5583], Candidozyma haemuli (species) [taxon 45357], Aspergillus niger (species) [taxon 5061]

## Figures

2 figures with captions in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC13027588/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC13027588