Scientists were able to revive a 46,000-year-old species of worm that had been frozen in permafrost. The findings, published in the journal PLOS Genetics, detailed that these creatures "have developed the ability to enter a state of suspended metabolism called cryptobiosis when environmental conditions are unfavorable," which allows them to "suspend life over geological time scales."
The worm was discovered to be a species of nematode or roundworm called Panagrolaimus kolymaenis, and it was frozen in Siberian permafrost from the time of the woolly mammoths. The nematode remained in a state "between death and life," Teymuras Kurzchalia, professor emeritus at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, who co-authored the study told CNN. "One can halt life and then start it from the beginning. This a major finding."
Nematodes are notoriously resilient, known to survive for long periods of time in treacherous conditions like sub-zero temperatures, per NPR. The worm survived through a process called cryptobiosis, which allowed it to bring its metabolism down substantially and not require water or oxygen. However, "nobody had thought that this process could be for millennia, for 40,000 years — or even longer," Philipp Schiffer, a group leader at the Institute of Zoology at the University of Cologne and one of the study's authors, told NPR.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The worm was revived simply by rehydrating it. "The major take-home message or summary of this discovery is that it is, in principle, possible to stop life for more or less an indefinite time and then restart it," Kurzchalia told The New York Times. As climate change continues to raise temperatures, more permafrost may melt to reveal other creatures that have been dormant for thousands of years.
-
Critics' choice: Outstanding new Japanese restaurantsFeature An all-women sushi team, a 15-seat listening bar, and more
-
Why do Dana White and Donald Trump keep pushing for a White House UFC match?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION The president and the sports mogul each have their own reasons for wanting a White House spectacle
-
'Quiet vacationing': a secret revolt against workplace cultureThe explainer You can be in two places at once
-
Lithium shows promise in Alzheimer's studySpeed Read Potential new treatments could use small amounts of the common metal
-
Scientists discover cause of massive sea star die-offSpeed Read A bacteria related to cholera has been found responsible for the deaths of more than 5 billion sea stars
-
'Thriving' ecosystem found 30,000 feet underseaSpeed Read Researchers discovered communities of creatures living in frigid, pitch-black waters under high pressure
-
What would happen to Earth if humans went extinct?The Explainer Human extinction could potentially give rise to new species and climates
-
Bacteria can turn plastic waste into a painkillerUnder the radar The process could be a solution to plastic pollution
-
New York plans first nuclear plant in 36 yearsSpeed Read The plant, to be constructed somewhere in upstate New York, will produce enough energy to power a million homes
-
Dehorning rhinos sharply cuts poaching, study findsSpeed Read The painless procedure may be an effective way to reduce the widespread poaching of rhinoceroses
-
Breakthrough gene-editing treatment saves babyspeed read KJ Muldoon was healed from a rare genetic condition
