Zombie Virus trapped for 48,500 years frozen in Arctic's permafrost revived by Scientist

NASA climate scientists have warned about dangers posed by viruses buried under ice caps in Arctic region. Scientists mentioned that rising temperatures due to global warming are causing part of Artic region’s permafrost, a frozen layer of soil that is beneath that surface, to thaw.

tably, one-fifth of rrn Hemisphere is covered by permafrost. According to scientists, if permafrost thaws significantly, some viruses described as “zombie viruses” that have been lying dormant for up to 48,500 years could reawaken and possibly endanger animals and humans.

A study about discovery has been published in journal Viruses in which researchers stated, "Fortunately, we can reasonably hope that an epidemic caused by a revived prehistoric pathogenic bacterium could be quickly controlled by modern antibiotics at our disposal even though bacteria carrying antibiotic-resistance genes appear to be surprisingly prevalent in permafrost."

As permafrost provides an oxygen-free environment that is t penetrated by light, scientists asserted it is like a time capsule of viruses and mummified remains of long-gone animals.

Scientists revive ancient viruses from permafrost

According to reports, French researcher Jean-Michel Claverie and his team, in study, reported that y had isolated and revived several ancient viruses from permafrost including a giant virus strain (Pithovirus) discovered in a sample containing a lot of mammoth wool.

"This study confirms capacity of large DNA viruses infecting Acanthamoeba to remain infectious after more than 48,500 years spent in deep permafrost," authors wrote in study. Mr Claverie and his team have been concentrating on recovering ancient viruses that affect only single-celled amoebae. "Without need to embark on such a risky project, we believe our results with Acanthamoeba-infecting viruses can be extrapolated to many or DNA viruses capable of infecting humans or animals," y added.

Furr,  scientists also issued a warning that melting of permafrost may result in unleashing of some unkwn pathogens. "How long se viruses could remain infectious once exposed to outdoor conditions (UV light, oxygen, heat), and how likely y will be to encounter and infect a suitable host in interval, is yet impossible to estimate. But risk is bound to increase in context of global warming, in which permafrost thawing will keep accelerating, and more people will populate Arctic in wake of industrial ventures," scientists ted.