MnSOD functions as a thermoreceptor activated by low temperature.

A conservative characteristic of manganese superoxide dismutase is the rapid formation of product inhibition at high temperatures. At lower temperatures, the enzyme is less inhibited and undergoes more catalytic fast cycles before being product-inhibited. The temperature-dependent kinetics could be rationalized by the temperature-dependent coordination in the conserved center of manganese superoxide dismutase. As temperature decreases, a water molecule (WAT2) approaches or even coordinates Mn as the sixth ligand to interfere with O-Mn coordination and reduce product inhibition, so the dismutation should mainly proceed in the fast outer-sphere pathway at low temperatures. Cold-activation is an adaptive response to low temperature rather than a passive adaptation to excess superoxide levels since the cold-activated dismutase activity significantly exceeds the amount of superoxide in the cell or mitochondria. Physiologically speaking, cold activation of manganese superoxide dismutase mediates cold stress signaling and transduces temperature (physical signal) degree into HO fluxes (chemical signal), which in turn may act as a second messenger to induce a series of physiological responses such as cold shock.