IOW / S. Bolius
The body has been numb in the Baltic Sea sediments, where there is no oxygen and sunlight for 7000 years.
Scientists got revive a phytoplankton which was buried in the Baltic Sea sediments for almost 7000 years, beating the record of resuscitation of an older living organism ever.
O, published in Isme Journal, gives clues about the resilience of microscopic organisms and their potential for survive extreme conditions During millennia, given the total absence of sunlight and oxygen at the bottom of the Baltic Sea.
This hostile environment leads to most of life to die, but some microorganisms come into a state of numbness, waiting for more favorable conditions to wake up. The investigation team collected Samples of 12 layers of sediment representative of the last 7000 years, exposing algae buried to light and oxygen. Algae returned to life in nine of the layers, being the oldest species revived Skeletonema marinoia unicellular phytoplankton.
“These deposits are like a time capsule which contains valuable information on ecosystems and biological communities of the past, ”explained the study leader Sarah Boliusfrom the Leibniz Institute for the Baltic Sea investigation.
One of the most notable discoveries was the fact that A S. Marinoi Reanimada not present a significant decline of biological function compared to modern descendants. The old algae maintained growth rates, cell division, and photosynthesis similar to those who had been inactive for just a few years. The cold temperatures of the Baltic Sea, approximately 4 ° C, probably contributed to their exceptional preservation.
Genetic analysis revealed that revived phytoplankton was distinct from that of other periods of time, suggesting evolutionary changes in response to variable environmental conditions. The study of these organisms, known as “Resurrection Ecology”Provides information on how marine life has genetically and functionally adapted to environmental changes over time.
Although previous studies have revived much older viruses from Permafrost, the oldest living body known as sediments before this discovery was a seed of about 2000 years old. The successful resurgence of the S. Marinoi It thus establishes a new resurrected aquatic life record.
