An ancient zombie virus has been revived after being frozen for nearly 50,000 years. The virus, along with six other viruses, was discovered in the frozen soil of Siberia. The youngest frozen virus was 27,000 years old, and the oldest was 48,500 years old, making it the oldest virus scientists have ever revived.

Reviving an ancient zombie virus may sound like a terrible idea, but a scientist did it in a controlled lab. And while viruses are dangerous, they can help us prepare for pandemic-level problems once the permafrost thaws. Being prepared is crucial as climate change continues to threaten our world and the world’s permafrost.

Researchers have discovered a 48,500-year-old virus at the bottom of a lake in Yukechi-Alas in Russia’s Yakutia region. The ancient zombie virus they reinvigorated is pandoravirus, sometimes called giant viruses. These viruses only affect single-celled organisms. Therefore, they cannot be transmitted to humans and animals.

All viruses found so far are these pandoraviruses, and according to experiments they are all active and replicating in subjects.

This information can help us better prepare for future infectious viruses that will be released as the permafrost thaws. If these giant viruses are still alive thousands of years later, it makes sense that other viruses might be alive as well. This means that the risk of other ancient zombie viruses re-emerging in the wild and infecting humans or animals is most likely once they are thawed.

The researchers first published data on ancient viruses on the bioRxiv server. A new paper on the results was also accepted and published in the journal Virus. Scientists have also discovered previously unseen ancient viruses in glaciers that may have been released as these ice shelves melted. Source