Shaheer Ahmed
After being inactive for at least 50,000 years, “zombie viruses” have came back to life, according to researchers at the French National Centre for Scientific Research.At least 13 viruses were reportedly discovered frozen in a thick layer of Siberian permafrost, according to a study titled An update on eukaryotic viruses resurrected from ancient perma- 2 frost.
The study asserts that despite spending thousands of years underground, these “zombie viruses” continue to be contagious. The report also raises concern for the global community on the permafrost melting brought on by global warming. It said that viruses, which have lain dormant from the dawn of time, can also be found in creatures.
The biohazard associated with reviving prehistorical amoeba-infecting viruses is thus totally negligible, compared to the search for “paleoviruses” directly from permafrost-preserved remains of mammoths, or prehistoric horses, the study revealed.
It further mentioned, “Without the need of embarking on such a risky project, we believe our results with Acanthamoeba-infecting viruses can be extrapolated to many other DNA viruses capable of infecting humans or animals.”
