Ramazzottius

Ramazzottius is a genus of water bear or moss piglet, a tardigrade in the class Eutardigrada, named after the Italian zoologist Giuseppe Ramazzotti.

Ramazzottius varieornatus (see image) is a terrestrial invertebrate that is extroardinarily tolerant of extreme conditions such as irradiation, chemicals, dehydration and high pressure. This tolerance is linked to the presence of the damage suppressor protein (Dsup) that binds to nucleosomes providing tolerance to DNA damage, such as that caused by ionizing radiation or hydroxyl radicals.