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The last time these specimen were squirming about, Neanderthals were still around.
A group of scientists uncovered a 46,000-year-old soil nematode from Siberian permafrost, and in an Sleeping Beauty-esque experiment woke the microscopic organism up from a millenniums’ long rest. The findings are described in a study published July 27 in the open access journal PLOS Genetics.
Also called roundworms, nematodes are a very adaptable group of sometimes microscopic animals. In addition to tardigrades and rotifers, some nematodes can survive harsh conditions by entering a dormant state known as cryptobiosis. This process basically shuts down the animals’ metabolic systems until they can be revived when environmental conditions become more favorable.
After uncovering the animals in Siberia’s northern Kolyma River, the team successfully woke them from this frozen-in-time state. Radiocarbon analysis dated the roundworms to 45,839 to 47,769 years ago, when direwolves and Neanderthals were still on Earth.
Sequencing the genome revealed that the roundworm is a new species of nematode. Panagrolaimus kolymaensis is a functionally extinct species and joins the ranks of some of Earth’s most ubiquitous organisms that dwell in water, soil, and on the ocean floor.
Expect to see alot more of this kind of thing as the permafrost continues to melt away. It is like a time machine.
A group of scientists uncovered a 46,000-year-old soil nematode from Siberian permafrost, and in an Sleeping Beauty-esque experiment woke the microscopic organism up from a millenniums’ long rest. The findings are described in a study published July 27 in the open access journal PLOS Genetics.
Also called roundworms, nematodes are a very adaptable group of sometimes microscopic animals. In addition to tardigrades and rotifers, some nematodes can survive harsh conditions by entering a dormant state known as cryptobiosis. This process basically shuts down the animals’ metabolic systems until they can be revived when environmental conditions become more favorable.
After uncovering the animals in Siberia’s northern Kolyma River, the team successfully woke them from this frozen-in-time state. Radiocarbon analysis dated the roundworms to 45,839 to 47,769 years ago, when direwolves and Neanderthals were still on Earth.
Sequencing the genome revealed that the roundworm is a new species of nematode. Panagrolaimus kolymaensis is a functionally extinct species and joins the ranks of some of Earth’s most ubiquitous organisms that dwell in water, soil, and on the ocean floor.
Recently awoken 46,000-year-old nematodes already have 100 generations of babies
The newly discovered Siberian roundworm species has since wiggled around and produced 100 generations of offspring.
www.popsci.com
Expect to see alot more of this kind of thing as the permafrost continues to melt away. It is like a time machine.