Scientists Revive Organism Found Buried at Bottom of Ocean

A team of researchers in Germany have revived algae cells found buried at the bottom of the Baltic Sea, where they'd lain dormant for more than 7,000 years. For millennia, the cells, imprisoned under layers of sediment, were deprived of oxygen or light. But once revived, they showed full functional recovery, the researchers report in a study published in The ISME Journal, firing back up their oxygen production and multiplying again like it was no big deal. According to the team, this is the oldest known organism retrieved from aquatic sediments to be revived from dormancy, providing a stunning example of what's possible in the burgeoning field of "resurrection ecology." "It is remarkable that the resurrected algae have not only survived 'just so,' but apparently have not lost any of their 'fitness,' i.e. their biological performance ability," study lead author Sarah Bolius of the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research said in a statement about the work. "They grow, divide and pho ... Read full article.