Climate change: melting Tibetan glaciers could unleash potentially dangerous bacteria, scientists say
- Team carried out a genetic analysis of nearly 1,000 species of microbes – many never seen before – found in snow and ice samples
- They say global warming is accelerating glacial melt, and if harmful bacteria are released it could have health risks downstream
More than 80 per cent of the microbes identified had not been seen before, according to the team from China, Australia and Denmark, led by scientists from Lanzhou University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Their genetic analysis found that the microorganisms had more than 27,000 molecules that could help the bacteria to make plants, animals or people ill, and nearly half of those molecules were previously unknown.
“The interaction between glaciers and modern microorganisms could be particularly dangerous, and potential health risks need to be evaluated,” the authors wrote in a paper published in the journal Nature Biotechnology on Monday.
They said if these potentially dangerous bacteria were released from the ice it could affect the world’s two most populous countries, China and India.
