Scientists infect plants with ancient virus from caribou poop

Scientists infect plants with ancient virus from caribou poop

Scientists have recreated a 700-year-old virus — found in frozen caribou feces. The poop has allowed them a rare look into viral evolution.

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, infected lab plants with the virus so they could study its evolution. They found that viruses could be preserved for hundreds of years if they're in frozen material. The results are published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Meghan DeMaria

Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.