Microbes that have never been seen before and frozen in glacial ice could, if they were to be unleashed, cause a wave of new pandemics

The effects of climate change have recently become even more alarming.

 

The Tibetan Plateau is home to more than 900 species of bacteria that have never been seen before by scientists. These microbes live within glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau. An examination of the genomes of the bacteria indicated that some of them had the potential to give rise to new pandemics, provided that the rapid melting caused by climate change frees them from their frozen prisons.

 

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences collected ice samples from 21 glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau for a new study. The Tibetan Plateau is a high-altitude region in Asia sandwiched between the Himalayan mountain range to the south and the Taklamakan Desert to the north. After that, the group analyzed the DNA of the microscopic organisms preserved within the ice. This allowed them to compile a vast database of the genomes of the microbes, which they referred to as the Tibetan Glacier Genome and Gene (TG2G) catalog. It is a first for scientists to sequence the genetic material of a microbial community buried deep within a glacier.

 

The scientists discovered 968 microbial species preserved within the ice, most of which were bacteria but also included algae, archaea, and fungi. Their findings were published on June 27 in the journal Nature Biotechnology. Perhaps more astounding is that approximately 98 percent of those species were previously unknown to scientific research. The researchers were surprised to find such a high amount of microbial diversity inside glaciers because of the difficulties connected with thriving there. According to the study's authors, "despite extreme environmental circumstances, such as low temperatures, high amounts of solar radiation, recurrent freeze-thaw cycles, and nutrient constraint, the surfaces of glaciers maintain a varied array of life."

 

According to the study, it is conceivable to resurrect bacteria that have been frozen for up to 10,000 years, even though the researchers are unsure of the actual ages of some of these microbes. Previous research has demonstrated that this process can be accomplished.

 

It is not the first time researchers have been surprised to discover many different microorganisms thriving in Tibetan glaciers. A group of researchers that examined ice cores taken from a single glacier in January 2020 came upon 33 distinct virus families residing beneath the ice, 28 of which had never been observed previously.

 

Researchers believe that the surprising microbial diversity found within glaciers, combined with the fact that climate change is causing an increase in the rate at which glacial ice is melting, increases the likelihood that potentially harmful microbes, most likely bacteria, will escape and cause havoc. The scientists concluded that if ice-entrapped dangerous bacteria are released into the environment, "Ice-entrapped pathogenic germs could lead to local epidemics and perhaps pandemics."

 

There is reason to believe that some of the newly discovered bacteria could pose a significant health risk to humans and other organisms. Within the TG2G database, the research team found a total of 27,000 different possible virulence factors. These are chemicals that assist germs in invading and colonizing potential hosts. The researchers warned that because approximately 47 percent of these virulence factors have never been observed before, there is no way to determine how dangerous the bacteria could be.

 

According to the researchers' findings, even if these potentially harmful bacteria do not remain viable for an extended period after fleeing their glaciers, they can still cause issues. Bacteria have the extraordinary ability to trade huge portions of their DNA with other bacteria. This process is known as the interchange of mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Therefore, even if the glacial bacteria perish soon after being thawed out, they can still pass on some of their virulence to other bacteria they come into contact with. According to the researchers, this genetic connection between germs found in glaciers and modern microorganisms "may be very harmful."

 

Because they supply fresh water to several waterways, including the Yangtze River, the Yellow River, and the Ganges River, which supply two of the most populous countries in the world, China and India, the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau could be a hot spot for the release of future pandemics. This is because they feed fresh water into several waterways, including the Yangtze River, the Yellow River, and the Ganges River. As the globe saw during the COVID-19 epidemic, pandemics spread fast through densely populated places.

 

However, this possible issue will not only have an impact in Asia. There are approximately 20,000 glaciers on Earth, accounting for approximately 10% of the total land mass. Each glacier likely has its distinct community of microbes living on and within it. According to a study conducted in April 2021 using satellite images of glaciers, nearly every glacier on Earth showed an accelerated rate of ice loss between the years 2000 and 2019. This raises the possibility that pandemic-causing microbes could escape from any planet. Before these microorganisms can be freed from their frigid confinement, the researchers have warned that "possible health concerns [of these microbes] need to be investigated."

 

Nevertheless, there is a bright side to this recently published study. It is possible to use genetic records of microbial communities as "toolkits" for bioprospecting, exploring natural systems to find valuable new compounds that can be used in medicine, cosmetics, and other beneficial technologies. One example of such a record is the TG2G catalog. Because of this, databases such as TG2G are extremely important, particularly if the newly discovered species become extinct in the future. According to the researchers, this outcome is too likely to occur if the newly discovered species cannot adapt to the changes in their frozen habitat.

Article source : https://www.livescience.com/hundreds-of-new-microbes-found-in-melting-glaciers

Image source  : https://pixabay.com/id/photos/samudera-pasifik-laut-pantai-3174447/