D: Have you ever experienced the shock of jumping from one rather extreme      temperature to another? It's painful.

Y: It's dangerous too. Scientists believe that organisms whose cells hold membrane-      bound structures like nuclei cannot withstand rapid extreme temperature changes.      They can adapt over time, but if the change happens too quickly the membranes fall      apart or freeze.

D: Yes, but there's one particular critter, with such membrane-bound structures I might      add, that deals with a wide range of extreme temperatures on a daily basis. In fact,      this creature might just deal with the widest shift in temperature of any other such      organism. This magnificent creature is the Pompeii worm. This worm resides in tubes      near hydrothermal vents along the seafloor. While in the tube, the worm's tail end      might be immersed in temperatures as hot as 178 degrees Fahrenheit, while its head      rests in cooler water, as moderate as 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Then to top that off, the      worm often leaves its tube to forage for food in water as cool as 50 degrees      Fahrenheit.

Y: Wow. 178 degree heat itself would kill many organisms, let only that range of      temperatures.

D: Not only that, but besides the temperatures, the Pompeii worm has to deal with lethal      chemicals too, like sulfides and heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, zinc, and      copper. Scientists think that symbiotic bacteria making the worm's back their home      may detoxify the water within the worm's tube. If this proves true, those little bacteria      could prove useful in cleaning up toxic waste sites.

Y: So not only do we have a magnificent worm here, we might have magnificent bacteria      too.  

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