Zombie Virus Starts Melting in Arctic, Is It Dangerous for Humans?

Can Zombie virus becomes a threat to humans?

While the risk of human exposure to ancient viruses is currently low due to the sparse population in the Arctic, the threat is bound to increase as permafrost thawing keeps accelerating.

The influenza strain responsible for the 1918 pandemic was found preserved in permafrost, as was smallpox DNA in 300-year-old mummies from Siberia. Thawing permafrost was also linked to a massive anthrax outbreak in Russia in 2016.

The immune systems of humans may not be adept at handling pathogens from the past, and antibiotic-resistance genes have been found in permafrost.

Therefore, Birgitta Evengard, professor emerita at Umea University’s Department of Clinical Microbiology in Sweden, conveyed there should be better surveillance of the risk posed by potential pathogens in thawing permafrost, but warned against an alarmist approach.

“You must remember our immune defense has been developed in close contact with microbiological surroundings," Evengard explained.