Greenland: Two million-year-old DNA discovered. “It’s a record”

DNA fragments two million years ago set a record in paleontological research. To date, the oldest sample containing DNA molecules was 1 million years old and was taken from the bones of a Siberian mammoth.

latest discovery It comes from northern Greenland, straight from the glacierNot from the body. The DNA is fragmented, a few millionths of a millimeter long. They were mined from clay and quartz. The scientists extracted 41 samples, which were analyzed using the latest technology.

The research was conducted by an international team led by researchers from the University of Cambridge (UK) and the University of Copenhagen (Denmark).

“DNA can degrade rapidly, but we have shown this is due to favorable environmental conditions We can go back in time further than anyone has ever dared to imagine– describes Prof. Eske Willerslev.

The researchers compared each of the DNA samples against databases containing data on organisms—plants, animals, and microbes. It turns out that The specimens found come from trees, shrubs, animals, including birds, and microorganisms.

Some DNA fragments were easily identifiable as ancestors of current species, others were identified only at the genus level, and others could not be matched to any species found in DNA databases.

Specific, among others, the DNA of reindeer, hares, lemon, birch and poplar trees. Mastodons have also been found to have ventured into these areas in Greenland.