More than 1,700 ancient viruses have been found by researchers hidden in ice in the Himalayas.

These viruses, according to NewsWeek, about three-quarters of which were previously unknown to science, were discovered thanks to remnants of frozen viral DNA in ice samples taken from the Guliya Glacier on the Tibetan Plateau, according to a new publication in the journal Nature Geoscience.

By analyzing the DNA of these ancient viruses, researchers hope to better understand how viruses adapt to changing climates.

“Prior to this research, how viruses are linked to large-scale changes in the Earth’s climate had remained a completely unexplored field,” said study co-author ZhiPing Zhong, a researcher at the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center at Washington State University. Ohio.

He added that “glacier ice is precious and we often don’t have the large quantities of material needed to research viruses and microbes.”

How dangerous are viruses that “thaw”

Ancient frozen viruses have also been discovered in other locations around the world, including Siberia. This has sparked fears that one of these viruses could infect humans as glaciers around the world melt due to climate change.

“If amoeba viruses can survive this long on ice, this strongly suggests that viruses that infect animals/humans could remain infectious in the same condition,” said Jean-Michel Claverie, a professor at Aix-Marseille University in France. , who led the study. “Furthermore, we know that DNA [των ιών που μολύνουν ζώα/ανθρώπους] detected in the permafrost’.