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Cute Little Tardigrades Are Basically Indestructible, and Scientists Just Figured Out One Reason Why
(www.scientificamerican.com)
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So the importance here is it seems they've found a way to trigger the Tun state that make tardigrades tough (and which outside they very much are not) which would allow more consistent experiment design around tuns
What is the tun state of a tardigrade?
Damn, that's really cool.
Also another fun fact: not all tardigrades are capable of going into the tun state. For example, aquatic tardigrades that live in freshwater streams can form what is called a summer egg, which allows them to survive hot and potentially dry conditions, but I don't believe much has been studied on this alternative state. IIRC marine tardigrades also cannot achieve the tun state, so this really only applies to terrestrial^*^ tardigrades.
^*^Terrestrial tardigrades are also sometimes referred to as aquatic tardigrades as they are only active (not in the tun state) in the presence of water (e.g., after it rains)
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TIL tardigrades are awesome.