Benthic zones are defined as the bottom sediments and other surfaces of a body of water such as an ocean or a lake.
How it affects marine life: Life in the deep is thought to adapt to this intense cold in the same ways that shallow marine life does in the polar seas. This is by having "loose" flexible proteins and unsaturated membranes which do not stiffen up in the cold.
Sources:
The Deep Sea ~ Ocean biology, Marine life, Sea creatures, Marine conservation... ~ MarineBio.org". MarineBio Conservation Society. Web.
