Canadian microbiologists studied microorganisms and viruses in the unique Lake Miln-Fjord, located in the Arctic area at a latitude of 82°S.
Miln-Fjord is an epishelf lake located about 800 km from the North Pole, a type of lake formed on ice glaciers, with ice sheet separating the lake from seawater; a study found that the lake is dominated by single-cell organisms, especially cyanobacteria, which are often infected with unusual "giganti viruses".
As a result of the study, scientists have been able to identify 15 full-scale ring genomes of viruses and microorganisms, including Pelagibacter bacteria, one of the smallest single-cell organisms.
Researchers note the uniqueness of the viral community in the freshwater lake compared to the seawater of the surrounding ocean, and in a water body where salt is growing with depth, there are niches for viruses and owners that are not found in either freshwater or marine layers with the same saltiness, scientists add.
The rapid rise in temperature limits the time left for microbiologists to explore the region, and when the temperature rises and the glacier is destroyed, the unique closed ecosystem will be destroyed.
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