Melting permafrost in the Arctic may be releasing ancient viruses that have been frozen for centuries, according to a recent report by scientists. The risk of these viruses being released into the environment due to climate change is causing concern among experts. Permafrost is a layer of soil that remains frozen all year round.
Jean-Michel Claverie, a renowned professor of economics and bioinformatics at Aix-Marseille University in France, has been on a unique mission to uncover ancient "zombie viruses" dormant microbes that could still infect hosts after being frozen for hundreds or thousands of years.
His team has made a groundbreaking discovery. They have isolated 13 viruses from samples of Siberian permafrost when these viruses were placed in petri dishes with amoeba, they were able to invade and infect these single-celled organisms, thus proving their potential for harm. Interestingly, the oldest virus was determined to have been frozen for an astonishing 48,500 years, setting a new record for the resuscitation of a zombie virus.
While the probability of a widespread outbreak caused by these viruses is still low, the risk cannot be completely ruled out. The melting of permafrost in the Arctic is releasing viruses that have been frozen for centuries, potentially causing diseases that have been extinct for a long time.