Keywords: Bioactive metabolites; secondary metabolites; psychrophiles

Abstract

Freezing habitats were long considered as being too harsh to support life. However, it is now known that an abundant variety of psychrophilic microorganisms can survive the harsh environment and these organisms possess amazingly diverse and biologically active secondary metabolites. Psychrophiles have to cope with some challenges, including hypersalinity of sea ice brine channels, the extremely low free water and nutrient availability in permafrost soil, and the unique light conditions. Therefore the survival of these microorganisms requires extraordinary adaptability and resistance against those stressors. This has led to the evolution of new metabolites with unique structures and biological activities. This review is an attempt to present some of the new sources of secondary metabolites produced by psychrophiles.