The researchers said their identification of the unique proteins involved in the process might provide methods to help crop plants resist the progressive accumulation of salt in soil -- a major limitation for agricultural productivity worldwide.

Since its discovery in 1905, D. salina has been a model organism used by scientists to study general mechanisms of salt adaptation in algae and plants. Previous studies have shown that in very salty environments, the alga's plasma membrane undergoes major changes that are expected to play a role in salinity tolerance.

In the new study, Adriana Katz and colleagues at the Weizmann Institute of Science compiled a comprehensive overview of membrane-associated proteins and have shown how changes in the membrane's structure and composition might help D. salina adapt to high salt content.

The study by Katz, Patrice Waridel, Andrej Shevchenko and Uri Pick appears in the journal of Molecular & Cellular Proteomics.