Superoxide dismutase (SOD) catalyzes the conversion of the superoxide radical ((center dot)O(2)(-)) into oxygen and hydrogen peroxide. Deschampsia antarctica is a plant that grows in Antarctica and survives to extreme low temperature and high UV radiation, thus it is an ideal model to study novel antioxidants. A cDNA Cu/Zn-SOD gene from D. antarctica was cloned into a pET vector and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21-SI. 112 mg/L of recombinant Cu/Zn-SOD was attained in batch cultures in bioreactor. Using Ni-affinity gel chromatography, the recombinant Cu/Zn-SOD was recovered with a purity of 90% and a specific enzyme activity of 749 at 25 degrees C. However, zymogram test showed that the enzyme has more activity at 4 degrees C. This D. antarctica SOD could be used to reduce the oxidation of refrigerated and frozen foods. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.