They have been given the name “zombie virus” because of their potential to cause an outbreak of a fatal strain of the disease that the current population is not prepared to deal with.
Scientists Resurrect Zombie Virus
Scientists have been sounding the alarm for years about the potential threats posed by viruses that are entombed beneath ice covers in the Arctic and other locations. They have been given the name “zombie virus” because of their potential to cause an outbreak of a fatal strain of the disease that the current population is not prepared to deal with. Because temperatures have started melting the ice as a result of global warming, the risk has significantly grown.
According to a story in Euro News, a French researcher resurrected some of these so-called “Zombie virus” using samples retrieved from the Siberian permafrost to gain a better understanding of the dangers associated with them. These viruses have been preserved on the earth for thousands of years thanks to the freezing temperatures.
It is important to highlight that the Arctic tundra and boreal forests of Alaska, Canada, and Russia are all maintained by the permafrost that covers one-fifth of the Northern Hemisphere. It works as a form of time capsule, keeping the mummified remnants of various extinct organisms along with old viruses. Together, these two things act as a kind of time capsule.
Researchers are resurrecting these germs and viruses to get a better idea of how much of a risk they pose to humankind so that they can better protect themselves. Even though bacteria carrying antibiotic-resistance genes appear to be surprisingly prevalent in permafrost, a study about the discovery has been published in the journal Viruses.
In the event of plant, wildlife, or human diseases brought on by the resurrection of an ancient undiscovered zombie virus, they warned, the situation would be “far much more dreadful.” This is because there was no specific cure for the zombie virus and no vaccine at the time.
According to the outlet, anthrax outbreaks in reindeer have already been tied to the melting of Siberia’s permafrost. This is because the region’s exceptionally hot summers caused old anthrax spores from animal graveyards to reemerge.
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In this most recent piece of research, a French researcher named Jean-Michel Claverie and his team reported that they had isolated and resurrected several ancient viruses from permafrost. One of these viruses was a giant virus strain called Pithovirus, which was found in a sample that contained a significant amount of mammoth wool.
The authors of the study said in it that their findings “show the capacity of big DNA viruses infecting Acanthamoeba to stay infectious after more than 48,500 years spent in deep permafrost.” Mr. Claverie and the rest of his colleagues have been putting a lot of effort into recovering ancient viruses that only harm amoebae with a single cell. They went on to say that they believe their findings with DNA viruses that infect acanthamoeba can be generalized to a large number of additional DNA viruses that are capable of infecting animals or humans.
The scientists have also issued a warning that the permafrost may melt, which may result in the release of certain unknown viruses. Additionally, it is unknown what the probability is that they’ll emerge across and infect a suitable host while they are still infectious. The permafrost will continue to thaw at an ever-increasing rate as a result of global warming, and the number of people living in the Arctic will continue to grow as a direct result of increased industrial activity. However, the likelihood of adverse outcomes is likely to increase “they made note of.
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