The technique could have all sorts of medical applications. Blood for transfusions could be stored for long periods, for example, or carried to remote disasters without having to be kept cool. Antibodies and vaccines would have an almost unlimited shelf life, making them easier to distribute in developing countries. The technique copies the way some bacteria can cope without water.
Cells usually die within seconds without water.
But a photosynthethic bacteria called Nostoc commune has evolved the ability the survive for centuries without water. The photosynthetic bacteria live on exposed rock surfaces, where they often dry out. When water splashes onto the rocks, the bacteria come back to life. Scientists at the Virginia Tech Center for Genomics say the bacteria survive by covering themselves with a slimy layer called glycan. By applying the technique we have found in cyanobacteria, we can dry out human cells.