Report by Prashasti Kulkarni
A roundworm of an undiscovered species was found frozen in the Siberian permafrost, 40 meters beneath the surface, in Russia.
Scientists said that this worm has been frozen for nearly 46,000 years and still lives!
The roundworm species, which scientists named Panagrolaimus kolymaensis, used similar methods to “suspend life” as used by a different species of roundworm called Caenorhabditis elegans.
The method they used to survive in the permafrost this long was a sort of stage between life and death, called “cryptobiosis,” where creatures such as this roundworm can halt (pause) their life, and begin it again when revived.
During this cryptobiotic stage, they go into a sort of dormant state, their metabolic rates reduce to help them survive without oxygen or water and live through intense climate for a long period of time.
This is not the first time a creature has done this.
Around five years ago, researchers from an institute in Russia found two other roundworm species in the Siberian permafrost. These worms were revived with just a little bit of water and sent to labs in Germany along with 100 other worms for testing.
There, scientists used a technique called radiocarbon analysis to analyse plant material from the worm samples and found that they had been frozen for around 47,769 years.
They also found why these creatures can survive the cryptobiotic period. It’s because both these roundworm species, along with a few others, share a genetic tool which causes them to produce a sugar called trehalose, which helps them live through freezing as well as dehydration.
This discovery can help scientists understand more about conservation of life and the genetics of the roundworm species. It can also help them develop methods to protect other species in similar ways.
The original paper can be read here.
All images from the original paper.
Siberian Permafrost: Permafrost is ground that is frozen for at least two years without melting. It dates back to the Ice Age and contains remains of microbes, mammoths and a lot of carbon. Siberian Permafrost is specific to an area in Russia called Siberia.
Radiocarbon analysis: Radiocarbon analysis or radiocarbon dating is the method using which researchers find how old a certain thing is. When a creature dies or becomes a fossil or is frozen in permafrost, they absorb carbon atoms into their tissue. Scientists can use this tissue and find out the remaining carbon atoms, which help them determine how old something is.