42,000-year-old worms frozen in Siberia brought back to life
The two roundworms lived at the time of woolly mammoths.
Scientists have managed to bring back to like worms frozen for almost 42,000 years, the Daily Mail reported.
Russian researchers from Institute of Physico-Chemical and Biological Problems of Soil Science, near Moscow, conducted the experiment.
They thawed the ice and revive the two roundworms discovered in Siberia. The worms lived at the time of woolly mammoths.
Researchers believe the fascinating experiment shows the "ability of multi-cellular organisms to survive long-term", the report reveals.
Out of the 300 prehistoric worms that were examined for the study, only two "were shown to contain viable nematodes", the report explained.
One of the worms, believed to be 41,700 years old, was found near the Alazeya River back in 2015. The other, thought to be 32,000, was discovered in 2002 in a prehistoric squirrel burrow in Duvanny Yar outcrop near the Kolyma River.
It could help enhance the fields of astrobiology and cryonics. The field of cryonics hopes to deep-freeze bodies of people for years.
The goal is to keep them frozen long enough for the purpose of or long-term interplanetary exploration.