00:00As the planet gets warmer and permafrost begins to thaw, researchers are finding some extremely
00:08old organisms that have been frozen for millennia.
00:11Back in 2018, they unearthed some nematodes in Siberia, estimating they were some 32,000
00:17years old.
00:18Now, using radiocarbon dating, they've discovered they're even far older than that.
00:22The genus is called Panagrolimus, and now experts say they are from the Pleistocene
00:26era, or a period on Earth around 46,000 years ago.
00:30What's even crazier?
00:31The nematodes were revived after being thawed out, meaning they are now the longest known
00:35creatures to have remained in cryobiosis ever.
00:39And that's massive news, as the previous record holders were modern worms, ones which
00:43have been documented as undergoing cryobiosis for just 39 years.
00:47The nematodes were found some 131 feet underground, with the study's authors saying about the
00:53This indicates that by adapting to survive cryobiotic state for short timeframes, in
00:57environments like permafrost, some nematode species gain the potential for individual
01:02worms to remain in the state for geological timeframes.
01:05Now they're searching for what possible upper limit there might be for cryobiosis, hoping
01:09to unlock the secret to safely freezing cells.
Comments