46,000-year-old worm revived from Siberian permafrost

A worm, frozen for a whopping 46,000 years, has been revived from the Siberian permafrost — a permanent layer of snow from the time when prehistoric giants like woolly mammoths, sabre-toothed tigers, and giant elks walked the Earth.

This breakthrough achievement by scientists is of a roundworm, which belongs to a previously unknown species. The worm was in cryptobiosis — a dormant condition that allows organisms to survive without water or oxygen, endure extreme temperatures and hold out against freezing or salty environments.

During the cryptobiosis state, the creature's metabolic rates reduce to nearly undetectable levels, successfully suspending them "between death and life."

Two of the discovered ancient worms have been hydrated by scientists in a Russian institute, and, after 100 of these were shifted to Germany for further examination, they were identified as a new species, Panagrolaimus Kolymaenis.

The worm, intriguingly, shares a molecular toolkit with Caenorhabditis elegans — another well-researched organism which potentially aids in surviving cryptobiosis via the production of a sugar known as trehalose.

This extraordinary discovery not only highlights the survival abilities of these cryptobiotic organisms but also offers a valuable understanding of conservation biology.

Scientists, by studying and analysing these creatures, can gain knowledge about how to protect other species in extreme conditions triggered by climate change and other environmental challenges.

Furthermore, the revelation of a shared biochemical passage between organisms separated by hundreds of millions of years offers fascinating glimpses into the conservation of certain developmental processes.

This unusual research will open gates for understanding and safeguarding life in the face of unprecedented environmental changes.