Scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences said that the melting of the glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau could lead to the release of new types of bacteria.. They were able to find 1,000 species of microorganisms here, hundreds of which are still unknown to science, according to IFL Science..

Climate Change Threatens Tibetan Plateau, Discovery Raises Concerns About Spread of Potentially Dangerous Pathogens.

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During the study, scientists collected surface snow, ice and other samples from 21 Tibetan glaciers between 2016 and 2020.. As a result, they found 968 species of bacteria, about 82% of which were not previously documented..

Previously, scientists believed that the conditions of glaciers were too extreme for a rich variety of life to live in them, but new research has shown that this is far from the case.. Last year, researchers described viruses found in a 15,000-year-old glacier that were unlike those seen before..

Glaciers and ice sheets cover 10% of the Earth's surface and are the largest reservoirs of fresh water on the planet.. But apart from scientific curiosity, there is a more pressing need to study them..

The authors of a new study express concern that the glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau are increasingly melting due to rising temperatures caused by climate change.. Scientists fear that bacteria that have been in the ice for thousands of years will find themselves in new conditions after they are washed downstream with melting water..

“Ice-trapped modern and ancient pathogenic microbes can lead to localized epidemics and even pandemics […] These microbes can carry new virulence factors that make plants, animals and humans vulnerable. In addition, virulence factors can be transferred horizontally within a microbial community through transposable genetic elements [. ] Interactions between glaciers and modern micro-organisms can be particularly hazardous, and potential health risks need to be assessed,” the study says..

More importantly, the Tibetan Plateau is known as the " If pathogenic bacteria enter here, the consequences can be devastating..

“The release of potentially dangerous bacteria could affect the two most populous countries in the world: China and India,” the study authors add..

At the moment, such warnings are preliminary, but scientists emphasize that it is necessary to assess the potential health risks associated with melting glaciers..

Previously, a team of scientists from New Zealand found that swarms of small shrimp-like sea creatures live in a domed cave under the ice shelf of Antarctica.. They live in a developed ecosystem, which until recently was hidden by glaciers..