Ghosts of the past: Global warming fears resurface as 41,000 years old viruses discovered in Tibetan glacier

A team of American and Chinese scientists has discovered as many as 1,705 genomes of viruses beneath the ice sheets in Tibet’s Guliya Glacier. Many of these viruses are novel (like novel coronavirus) which means that their existence hasn’t been chronicled in science so far.

With the latest discovery of glacial viruses in Tibet, the known collection of ancient viruses has skyrocketed.

“After years of persistence, we successfully extracted and sequenced approximately 1,700 genomes of species-level virus operational taxonomic units from the ice core, expanding the known collection of glacier-preserved ancient viruses more than 50-fold,” the research article titled A Decade-Long Journey into Glacier-Archived Ancient Viruses and Their Paleoclimatic Connections noted.

Scientists have told the press that the viruses differed significantly between colder and warmer eras, noting that a distinct community of viruses formed during these climatic shifts, at the end of the last ice age some 11,500 years ago. “This at least indicates the potential connection between viruses and climate change,” said ZhiPing Zhong of Ohio State University, lead author on the research.

Also, co-author Lonnie Thompson highlighted the importance of research, describing it as ‘a new tool that can answer basic climate questions that we couldn't have answered otherwise’.

The Guliya Glacier, which is located above 20,000 feet in the northwestern Tibetan Plateau, has historically been an active site for paleoclimate research.

Risks involved?

From a health perspective, excavating prehistoric ice sheets usually don’t pose hazards for present-day human populations. This is because these long-dormant viruses mostly infected other microbes rather than animals. 

However, researchers have found that the adaptations of these viruses could have compromised their hosts’ ability to survive harsh weather conditions. 

Also, these viruses haven’t disintegrated biochemically even after major shifts in Earth’s climate over millennia. Thus, in an adversely changing environment, it is widely believed that the melting of ice sheets can release viruses that can mutate and adapt to contemporary conditions.