Scientists Discover 30,000-Year-Old 'Giant Virus' in Siberia

And they plan to revive it in a lab setting. Is this "Jurassic Park" revisited?

A group of French researchers found a 30,000-year-old virus, which was harvested from Siberian permafrost, Time reported. The scientists' study of the specimen was published in the journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences."

"Researchers studied a so-called 'giant virus' called Mollivirus sibericum discovered in the frozen permafrost. It's the fourth 'giant' virus found and analyzed since 2003," the news source said.

What's the significance of this discovery?

The scientists pointed out that the virus could still be revived after thawing, which means the effects of climate change on permafrost and large ice masses poses a danger to human health as this phenomenon may unleash other still-frozen pathogen. A Pithovirus sibericum virus, also found in the permafrost, could reportedly still be infectious after all those years spent locked in ice, although it doesn't target humans or animals.

"This is the first time we've seen a virus that's still infectious after this length of time," revealed Jean-Michel Claverie, a professor from the National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS) of France's University of Aix-Marseille.

The "ancient pathogen" in question was found buried 100 feet into the frozen ground.

"It belongs to a class of giant viruses that were discovered 10 years ago," BBC said. "The virus infects amoebas but does not attack human or animal cells."

"These are all so large that, unlike other viruses, they can be seen under a microscope. And this one, measuring 1.5 micrometres in length, is the biggest that has ever been found," the news agency said.

According to tests, the said virus attacks amoebas.

"It comes into the cell, multiplies and finally kills the cell. It is able to kill the amoeba - but it won't infect a human cell," the study's co-author, Dr. Chantal Abergel, told the BBC.

Phys.org has since called the organism "frankenvirus."

"To qualify as a 'giant,' a virus has to be longer than half a micron, a thousandth of a millimetre (0.00002 of an inch)," the science news site noted.

It's worth noting that the areas where the microbes were discovered are "coveted for their mineral resources, especially oil, and will become increasingly accessible for industrial exploitation as more of the ice melts away."

"If we are not careful, and we industrialise these areas without putting safeguards in place, we run the risk of one day waking up viruses such as small pox that we thought were eradicated," Professor Claverie pointed out.

WATCH: