JAKARTA – Natural Antarctic fish tumor hideous skin to resemble a monster. It is suspected that climate change is the cause that makes parasitic diseases spread rapidly in Antarctic waters.
It’s just that the condition is really terrible. The fish found look very different because they are pale, leathery, and appear bumps in various places on the trunk and head. In some cases the bulge even covers more than a third of the body surface.
The Metro website says scientists claim they have never seen such an outbreak before in the region. Through research conducted and has been published in the journal iScience mentions the heating conditions that occur Antarctica it becomes a habitable environment for the parasites that cause tumors.
The two scientists, John Postlethwait and Thomas Desvignes of the University of Oregon claimed to have conducted research on a number of fish in the Antarctic region over the past decade. In this study, they learned that a group of fish in Antarctica had adapted to the natural conditions of the coldest region in the south of the earth.
It’s just that since 2018 they have noticed a tumor in that group of fish. Together with virologists and pathologists, they believe that the tumor is the result of a parasitic disease. They say that melting water and ice may have contributed to the outbreak in this highly vulnerable ecosystem.
“When living conditions become challenging, animals become more susceptible to disease,” says Thomas Desvignes.
Worse yet, according to research conducted, the parasite that makes the fish look like a moonster actually comes from a different genus. The parasite has nothing in common with the other parasites from the previous case of the disease.
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“It may be difficult to pinpoint disease outbreaks to a specific cause. But Antarctica’s ecosystems are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and are undergoing rapid change,” the study, reported in the journal iScience, said.
Thomas Desvignes adds that fish may feel pressure as waters heat up and ecosystems change. At the same time, climate change can also affect the life cycle of parasites. It can even be very effective in infecting.
“Perhaps the parasite has a long life cycle and only often manifests as disease outbreaks,” said Thomas Desvignes.
(wsb)
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