Scientists Revive 48,500-Year-Old ‘Zombie Virus’ Buried in Ice

If you were a screenwriter imagining the Siberian wilderness, you undoubtedly thought about what mystery you could conjure up to add intrigue to the already harsh backdrop. That would be some skulking animals. The arctic wastes might conceal some lethal lost technology. Or are the frigid depths home to an ancient zombie virus? (Ding ding!)

With scientists having discovered the latter of these aforementioned ideas, it appears that real-life science is making progress toward catching up to science fiction every day. Some fear that the recent reanimation of a number of ancient viruses that had been stored in the Siberian permafrost for tens of thousands of years could have fatal consequences.

As climate change makes temperatures soar worldwide, it has also begun irreversibly thawing significant parts of the frozen Northern Hemisphere — a permanently frozen zone called the permafrost. While the main concern here was the number of greenhouse gases released due to this effect, the freshest worry is that these could also threaten to release dangerous ancient microbes into the world, which could pose a significant danger to public health.

Out of the 13 primitive viruses that these researchers found, the oldest was an amoeba virus found in stoic dormancy under a lake for 48,500 years. Using live single-cell amoeba cultures, the team determined that all 13 viruses still had the potential to become infectious pathogens.

Even though the majority of the viruses we’ve discovered so far only affect amoeba, scientists think there may still be some viruses out there that can harm humans, animals, or plants. Since we have access to antibiotics, the microorganisms that were already being discharged offer less of a concern. But if we accidentally release a novel virus like the Sars-CoV-2, that could spell disaster for public health.

“It is therefore legitimate to ponder the risk of ancient viral particles remaining infectious and getting back into circulation by the thawing of ancient permafrost layers,” the paper explains.

Most of the viruses that will be released as more ice permafrost ice thaws will be unknown to us, as they’ve been literally stuck in time for aeons. But whether they become infectious when placed under current climate conditions — which might be vastly different from the time they were preserved — remains to be seen.

The paper is yet to be peer-reviewed, and its contents can be accessed here.