It is the oldest confirmed ancient DNA to date.
Low temperatures and oxygen levels, as well as a lack of ultraviolet radiation, make polar sea ice, like the Sea of Scotland, excellent “repositories” of ancient DNA. Science notice.
In a new study, a marine biologist from the University of Tasmania in Australia, Linda Armbrecht and colleagues, managed to extract fragments of organic material, the so-called sedaDNA (ancient sedimentary DNA), as well as obtain samples of ancient diatoms.
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Scientists have discovered ancient DNA beneath the Scottish Sea, north of Antarctica, and they believe the samples found will help to learn more about the development of life on the planet and climate change.
According to Linda Armbrecht, it is “the oldest ancient marine DNA proven” to date. Note that the ancient DNA was mined in 2019 and has since undergone a contamination control process so that scientists can ensure the accuracy of the age markers incorporated into the material.
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However, this isn’t the only discovery scientists have found under the permafrost. They also managed to get hold of fragments of diatoms (single-celled organisms), which, in all likelihood, are already more than 500,000 years old.
Scientists believe that all of these findings will help them further form an overview of how this part of the world developed thousands of years ago. In the future, scientists intend to reconstruct ancient patterns of local ecosystems, which will provide a genuine glimpse into the past.
Note that Antarctica is one of the most vulnerable regions on Earth today. Scientists believe that the samples they managed to obtain in the future will help develop a plan to combat inevitable climate change. The millennial history of Antarctica will help scientists in this.
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