Oldest Living Creatures in the World: Frozen Worms Found in Siberian Permafrost

Permafrost is a piece of land that has been frozen for at least two consecutive years. The world’s oldest permafrost is located in Siberia, where the land has been frozen in places for more than 650 thousand years.

Examining samples of this ancient soil in 2017, researchers found two frozen nematodes, members of the roundworm-type class. The nematodes were taken to a laboratory where previous work had been done to find out how these creatures can enter such a low-activity state to survive in extreme conditions.

This condition is called cryptobiosis, when the body’s metabolism stops, preventing any development.

It’s like a life-and-death situation, researchers told Newsweek.

It was possible to determine the age of the worms by analyzing the remains of frozen plants that were around them. It turned out that the worms froze between 45,839 and 47,769 years ago, making them the oldest living creatures in the world.

Cryptobiosis in this case is not really clear. Scientists think these nematodes rely on the sugar trehalose to survive long-term in extreme conditions. Trehalose could also act as a type of antifreeze in worms.

The study was published in a scientific journal “PLOS Genetics”.

2023-07-28 21:00:00
#Scientists #revived #worms #frozen #thousand #years