Scientists discover giant viruses that eat ice-melting algae in the Arctic

Researchers have found new viruses on the surface of Arctic ice that could slow down the melting of ice due to global warming. Laura Perini from the Department of Environmental Science at Aarhus University and her team have revealed that these giant viruses feed off the algae on ice sheets. These algal blooms often lead to faster ice melting, thus exacerbating the effect of greenhouse gases. Scientists believe that the viruses, living alongside the algae, can help control the algal spread and thus serve as a natural control mechanism.

"We don't know a lot about the viruses, but I think they could be useful as a way of alleviating ice melting caused by algal blooms. How specific they are and how efficient it would be, we do not know yet. But by exploring them further, we hope to answer some of those questions," said Laura Perini.

She explains that it is the first time that such algae-eating viruses have been found in the ice sheets of the Arctic.

"We analyzsed samples from dark ice, red snow, and melting holes (cryoconite). In both the dark ice and red snow we found signatures of active giant viruses. And that is the first time they've been found on surface ice and snow containing a high abundance of pigmented microalgae," she was quoted as saying by Space Daily.

Despite being of large size, these viruses can’t be seen with the naked eyes. The scientists only came to know about them after they analysed the DNA in samples taken from the ice.

"In the total mRNA sequenced from the samples, we found the same markers as in the total DNA, so we know they have been transcribed. It means that the viruses are living and active on the ice," she said.

Giant viruses are still quite mysterious creatures, having only been discovered recently on the icy continent. What makes them different from their viral kin is their bustling activity—they're equipped with numerous active genes that enable them to perform tasks like DNA repair, replication, transcription, and translation. More research is needed to unravel more insights about these microcreatures.

(With inputs from agencies)