Isolation and purification of antifreeze proteins from skin tissues of snailfish, cunner and sea raven

Antifreeze proteins/polypeptides (AFPs), which are found in diverse species of marine fish, are grouped into four distinct classes (types I-IV). The discovery of skin-specific type I AFPs established that this class contains distinct isoforms, liver-type and skin-type, which are encoded by separate gene families. In this study, type I AFPs were isolated and partially characterized from skin tissues of Atlantic snailfish (Liparis atlanticus) and cunner (Tautogolabrus adspersus). Interestingly, evidence from this study indicates that snailfish type I AFPs synthesized in skin tissues are identical to those circulating in their blood plasma. Furthermore, type II AFPs that are identical to those expressed in liver for export into blood were purified from sea raven (Hemitripterus americanus) skin tissue extracts. It is clear that epithelial tissues are an important source for antifreeze expression to enhance the complement of AFPs that protect fish from freezing in extreme cold environments. In addition, the evidence generated in this study demonstrates that expression of AFPs in fish skin is a widespread phenomenon that is not limited to type I proteins.