Long-Lasting Environmental DNA?
Environmental DNA — eDNA — is an interesting area of study. Since partial and entire genomes of many creatures are known (and others may often be indicated), samples can be obtained and scientists can tell what lives in the tops of trees, for instance. If only MacGyver had known about this...
Now just sit back and you'll read a tale, a tale that Dr. Jason Lisle likes to tell. A man insisted that he was dead. His family was upset and tried to convince him otherwise, but to no avail (post-mortem muscle responses, all that sort of thing). They took him to his doctor who asked him if dead men bleed. The man thought about it for a spell, then admitted that it was not possible. The doctor alcohol-swabbed his thumb, jabbed it, and they watched bright red blood coming out. "What do you know?" the man said. "Dead men do bleed!"
Whether eDNA or regular, the stuff does not linger. Normally, it lasts a few thousand years, but on rare occasions under excellent conditions, it can last much longer before breaking down beyond recognition. Now we hear about eDNA lasting for two million Darwin years, and mastodons in Greenland.
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| Mastodons, Wikimedia Commons / Thomas Quine (CC BY 2.0) |
It's a good story to show presuppositions, and can be funny if told correctly, but I wanted to make a point: Facts do not matter if someone chooses to believe a story. Papa Darwin works in millions of years his wonders to perform, and secularists want to make sure they're available to him. They make assumptions about radiometric dating, deal from the bottom of the deck. Also, they exclude creationists who ask the tough questions and bring up points of discussion that they'd rather not face. The uncontaminated truth supports recent creation.
The study of “environmental DNA” (eDNA) is a rapidly advancing field. Archaeologists and paleontologists have made great strides in recovering pieces of genetic code from soil, permafrost, caves, and many other locations. For instance, these scientists look for DNA in “rainwash” from forests to determine what lives at the tops of the trees without having to climb up there to look . . .Other applications of this burgeoning field include searching for eDNA in sea water, soil samples and in the human microbiome. The data give scientists clues to the identity of organisms living in those ecological niches.. . .
Once lost from the organism, eDNA begins a steady process of decay. For a time, though, the DNA—even if fragmented—can be recovered and sequenced. How long can it survive before it becomes useless? The news media are announcing a new record.
Y'all gotta see the full article over at "Can DNA Last 2 Million Years?"