Cryosphere Recession and Pathogen Release

Microorganisms sealed by glaciers have survived extreme cold and high-pressure environments and may have evolved unique resistance (including drug resistance). For example, Bacillus anthracis found in the Siberian tundra was responsible for the 2016 outbreak that killed thousands of reindeer, and “P-bacteria” in the Alaskan tundra are resistant to a wide range of antibiotics, and their drug-resistant genes can infect modern bacteria through horizontal transfer. The report warns that every 1°C of warming increases the likelihood of trans-species transmission of drug-resistant genes by a factor of eight, and that global warming is accelerating this process.