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Can ancient pathogens emerging from glaciers and permafrost reach Europe by aerosolization?

Bruhn, Anna LU (2023) In Student thesis series INES NGEK01 20231
Dept of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science
Abstract
Glaciers and permafrost capture bacteria and viruses when they form, which can be suspended for millennia. This includes long since extinct pathogens which are functionally novel. As polar regions get warmer these pathogens will emerge and spread through the local ecosystem, potentially altering it. Ancient pathogens do not only pose a risk to their local environments as they can be aerosolized and transported long distances by wind. In this study I aimed to answer the question whether such pathogen transport is possible from Greenland to Europe. Through reviewing and synthesising existing literature from multiple disciplines I found that aerosolized pathogen transport from Greenland to Europe is indeed possible. How likely this is to... (More)
Glaciers and permafrost capture bacteria and viruses when they form, which can be suspended for millennia. This includes long since extinct pathogens which are functionally novel. As polar regions get warmer these pathogens will emerge and spread through the local ecosystem, potentially altering it. Ancient pathogens do not only pose a risk to their local environments as they can be aerosolized and transported long distances by wind. In this study I aimed to answer the question whether such pathogen transport is possible from Greenland to Europe. Through reviewing and synthesising existing literature from multiple disciplines I found that aerosolized pathogen transport from Greenland to Europe is indeed possible. How likely this is to occur under future climate conditions is unknown, as there is no consensus on how atmospheric circulation over the Atlantic will change. As the possibility under current atmospheric conditions is established by this study, future interdisciplinary research to further explore this phenomenon is warranted. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Bruhn, Anna LU
supervisor
organization
course
NGEK01 20231
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Ancient pathogens, Greenland, Aerosolized pathogens, Aerosol transport
publication/series
Student thesis series INES
report number
590
language
English
id
9126323
date added to LUP
2023-06-21 13:18:34
date last changed
2023-06-21 13:18:34
@misc{9126323,
  abstract     = {{Glaciers and permafrost capture bacteria and viruses when they form, which can be suspended for millennia. This includes long since extinct pathogens which are functionally novel. As polar regions get warmer these pathogens will emerge and spread through the local ecosystem, potentially altering it. Ancient pathogens do not only pose a risk to their local environments as they can be aerosolized and transported long distances by wind. In this study I aimed to answer the question whether such pathogen transport is possible from Greenland to Europe. Through reviewing and synthesising existing literature from multiple disciplines I found that aerosolized pathogen transport from Greenland to Europe is indeed possible. How likely this is to occur under future climate conditions is unknown, as there is no consensus on how atmospheric circulation over the Atlantic will change. As the possibility under current atmospheric conditions is established by this study, future interdisciplinary research to further explore this phenomenon is warranted.}},
  author       = {{Bruhn, Anna}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  series       = {{Student thesis series INES}},
  title        = {{Can ancient pathogens emerging from glaciers and permafrost reach Europe by aerosolization?}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}