Psychrophiles or
cryophiles (adj. cryophilic) are
extremophilic organisms that are capable of
growth and
reproduction in cold temperatures, ranging from -20 °C to +10 °C. Temperatures as low as -15 °C are found in pockets of very salty water (brine) surrounded by sea ice. Psychrophiles are true extremophiles because they adapt not only to low temperatures but often also to further environmental constraints. They can be contrasted with
thermophiles, which thrive at unusually hot temperatures. In addition to that, distinctions between mesophilic and psychrophilic cold-shock response, including lack of repression of house-keeping protein synthesis and the presence of cold-acclimation proteins (Caps) in pyschrophiles, does exist. The environments they inhabit are ubiquitous on Earth, as a large fraction of our planetary surface experiences temperatures lower than 15 °C. They are present in
alpine and
arctic soils, high-
latitude and
deep ocean waters, polar
ice,
glaciers, and
snowfields. They are of particular interest to
astrobiology, the field dedicated to the formulation of theory about the possibility of extraterrestrial life, and to
geomicrobiology, the study of microbes active in geochemical processes. In experimental work at
University of Alaska Fairbanks, a 1000-litre
biogas digester using psychrophiles harvested from "mud from a frozen lake in Alaska" has produced 200–300 litres of methane per day, about 20–30% of the output from digesters in warmer climates.