A team of researchers succeeded in reviving millennia-old viruses from permafrost. The scientists warn that climate change could further increase the risk of pathogens from the ice.
Marseille – Animal carcasses, plant remains, human bodies and the pathogens they contain slumber deep under the snow and ice. As the ice and glaciers recede, more and more of them are being uncovered – the remains could also pose a danger to humans. French researchers have now managed to bring some viruses from the ice back to life.
“Zombie viruses” out of the ice: researchers bring pathogens back to life
A team led by the French researcher Jean-Marie Alempic from the Aix-Marseille University succeeded in detecting 13 previously unknown virus types in permafrost samples. The research was based on “seven different old Siberian permafrost samples”, according to the scientists Research paper.
The samples examined included millennia-old mammoth wool and wolf entrails. The remains are part of an ice sample taken from beneath an arctic lake. The researchers discovered the type of virus “Pandoravirus yedoma” in it, which infects amoebas and, thanks to its size, can even be detected with a normal light microscope. The pathogen had survived in the ice for 50,000 years – it then became virulent again in the laboratory.
Due to climate change: “Unknown viruses released on thawing”
“It is likely that old permafrost will release unknown viruses as it thaws,” the scientists write in their study. However, the researchers emphasized that the study was carried out under laboratory conditions – optimal conditions for bringing the “zombie viruses” back to life. If viruses were to appear in the wild, things would look a little different.
According to the scientists, it is therefore not yet possible to estimate how long potentially dangerous viruses would survive outdoors. Unlike in the laboratory, the pathogens in nature are exposed to UV and solar radiation, heat and oxygen. It is therefore elementary for their lifespan “that they meet a suitable host in the meantime and infect it,” according to the researchers.
permafrost
Permafrost is soil whose temperature has been below zero degrees Celsius for at least two consecutive years. Permafrost is found in most of the high mountains and in the polar regions of the world. Greenland is 99 percent permafrost, Alaska is 80 percent. Permafrost can also be found in Russia (65%), Canada (50%) and China (20%).
Climate change and industrialization: more and more pathogens released
Permafrost researcher Guido Grosse from the Alfred Wegner Institute was also involved in the study. In conversation with Focus Online, the scientist explained that it was quite possible that the ice would expose previously unknown bacteria and viruses that could also pose a danger to humans. Climate change is one of the reasons why more and more pathogens will probably be released in the future. In Germany, too, the glaciers are disappearing – and at a rapid pace.
Another decisive factor: “Industrialization is also progressing in the far north,” says Grosse. “Accordingly, the chances of two unfavorable circumstances colliding increase,” explained the researcher. “Namely, that infectious pathogens for mammals sometimes thaw out of the permafrost and they come into direct contact with humans.”
“Risk will increase” – further research needed
According to Grosse, the study situation on the behavior of pathogens under real conditions is currently still very sparse. However, the risk of life-threatening viruses emerging under the thick layers of ice is quite real – according to the research team, research must continue in this direction.
This also becomes clear in the conclusion of the French research team: “The risk will increase in connection with global warming if the thawing of the permafrost accelerates further and more people will colonize the Arctic in the course of industrial enterprises.” Meanwhile, a Parisian research team discovered a another previously unknown virus, when investigating the cause of a patient’s hepatitis. The researchers are faced with a puzzle.(mlh)
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