18.02.2026 18:10
A new species of bacteria, over 5,000 years old, discovered in the depths of the glaciers in the Carpathian Mountains extending from Central Europe to the Balkans, has alarmed the scientific community by showing resistance to a significant portion of modern antibiotics. This organism, isolated for thousands of years between ice sheets, has revealed striking findings that could shed light on both potential health risks and future medications.
The Carpathian Mountains, stretching from Central Europe to the Balkans, have come to the forefront with a striking discovery. Research conducted in the part of the mountains located within Romania's borders has uncovered a prehistoric bacterium preserved in the depths of glaciers.
AS IF IT CAME OUT OF A TIME CAPSULE
According to scientists' analyses, a bacterium dating back approximately 5,300 years, to the Late Stone Age, was found in the cave. This organism, isolated between ice layers for thousands of years, has been preserved like a time capsule, reaching the present day.
UNEXPECTED RESISTANCE TO ANTIBIOTICS
What makes the discovery particularly remarkable is the bacterium's resistance to some of modern medicine's most powerful weapons. In laboratory tests, many common antibiotics were tried, and it was observed that a significant portion of them were ineffective against the bacterium. This situation revealed that antibiotic resistance is not just a contemporary issue, but a defense mechanism that nature has been developing for thousands of years.
A NEW SPECIES NOT PREVIOUSLY IDENTIFIED
The research was conducted under the Romanian Academy of Biology. Samples were taken from the underground glaciers in the Scarioara Glacier Cave located in the northwest of the country. The scientific team reached this ancient microorganism by descending several meters into the extracted ice core.
One of the researchers, Cristina Purcarea, stated that the findings have been shared with international scientific communities through Frontiers in Microbiology. As a result of the examinations, it was noted that the bacterium is a new species that has not been previously identified and has been introduced to the scientific literature under a different name.
THREAT OR OPPORTUNITY?
Another striking result of the research is that this bacterium has a slowing effect on the proliferation of some harmful microbes. Experts express that this feature could pave the way for the development of new drugs in the future, while also highlighting the risk of similar ancient microorganisms mixing into nature with the melting of glaciers. According to scientists, this discovery raises new questions regarding global health and provides important clues about nature's unknown defense systems.