StringJunky Posted November 7, 2023 Share Posted November 7, 2023 (edited) Quote As Russia’s Permafrost Thaws, Ancient Pathogens Risk Re-Awakening Ancient pathogens that have been preserved in northern Russia’s permafrost for millennia could reawaken as global temperatures rise, scientists warn, potentially putting humanity at risk of never-before-seen diseases. Jean-Michel Claverie, a virologist and emeritus professor at the Aix-Marseille University School of Medicine, is one of the few scientists worldwide who has studied “zombie viruses” in the Siberian permafrost. He warned they could be present in Russia’s frozen soil in a “very large number and diversity.” “We only attempted to revive Amoeba viruses, because they are without danger to animals, humans or plants,” Claverie told The Moscow Times. “When we sequence the whole DNA from a permafrost sample we can identify viruses belonging to many different types, including some related to animal or human diseases, such as smallpox and African swine fever.” While human-induced climate change impacts the whole planet, the Arctic is warming three times faster than the global average, raising concerns regarding permafrost, the continuously frozen soil covering almost two-thirds of Russia. Scientists have for years warned that melting permafrost will release potent greenhouse gases that set off a feedback loop of global warming, and destabilize buildings and infrastructure in Russia’s far north. Claverie has dedicated over a decade to the study of viruses and even visited Siberia to revive pathogens that have laid dormant for thousands of years. In 2014, Claverie and evolutionary biologist Chantal Abergel successfully isolated a giant 30,000-year-old infectious virus, comparable in size to a small bacterium and 150 times larger than any bacteriophage, a type of virus that infects bacteria. In a 2022 study, which Claverie co-authored, an international team of researchers confirmed the infectious potential of 13 more viruses after being frozen in deep permafrost for over 48,500 years...... https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/11/07/as-russias-permafrost-thaws-ancient-pathogens-risk-re-awakening-a82985 Edited November 7, 2023 by StringJunky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exchemist Posted November 7, 2023 Share Posted November 7, 2023 20 minutes ago, StringJunky said: Oh great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StringJunky Posted November 7, 2023 Author Share Posted November 7, 2023 (edited) 54 minutes ago, exchemist said: Oh great! Yeah. I read a couple of English-language Russian news sites and local environmental news often shows up. in them. It's a big thing there because the current regime is basically in denial. The melting of the Arctic is an 'opportunity' for commercial, geopolitical exploitation, not a potential catastrophe. Short-termism; it looks good in elections Edited November 7, 2023 by StringJunky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermack Posted November 10, 2023 Share Posted November 10, 2023 It could be a problem, but it might be a bit overstated. Most viruses are closely matched to their host, and there is a sort of arms race going on, with the host immune system evolving to fight, and the virus evolving to counteract it. When a virus from a hundred thousand years ago emerges, it will need to rapidly reproduce, being no longer frozen. But the animals that are about now might have immune capabilities that it hasn't evolved to match. Or their main host might now be extinct. I realise it could work the other way too though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimreepr Posted November 10, 2023 Share Posted November 10, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, mistermack said: It could be a problem, but it might be a bit overstated. Most viruses are closely matched to their host, and there is a sort of arms race going on, with the host immune system evolving to fight, and the virus evolving to counteract it. When a virus from a hundred thousand years ago emerges, it will need to rapidly reproduce, being no longer frozen. But the animals that are about now might have immune capabilities that it hasn't evolved to match. Or their main host might now be extinct. I realise it could work the other way too though. I find the human virus analogue to be woefully short sighted and very dangerous; it's like holding up your hands and saying "I can't help it"... We have enough food and the means to provide enough shelter and the means to drastically reduce our carbon footprint; ie. we have the ability to put the brakes on now. It's only the stupid, most unevolved, virus that would chose to kill the host... Edited November 10, 2023 by dimreepr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
npts2020 Posted November 15, 2023 Share Posted November 15, 2023 On 11/10/2023 at 9:56 AM, dimreepr said: It's only the stupid, most unevolved, virus humans that would chose to kill the host... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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