Scientists have recently unveiled the largest animal genome ever sequenced, belonging to the South American lungfish, "Lepidosiren paradoxa". This remarkable discovery reveals that the lungfish's genome is a staggering 90 billion base pairs long, making it 30 times larger than the human genome and twice the size of the previous record-holder, the Australian lungfish.

Lungfish are often considered "living fossils" due to their close relation to the ancient ancestors of all land vertebrates, including humans. By studying the enormous genome of the South American lungfish, researchers hope to unlock secrets about the early evolution of vertebrates that first ventured onto land around 360 million years ago.

The study, led by a team of international scientists, highlights that the lungfish's genome has expanded rapidly over time, mainly due to the activity of transposons—DNA segments that can replicate themselves and move around within the genome. Interestingly, this genomic expansion has occurred at an unprecedented rate, adding the equivalent of the entire human genome every 10 million years.

Despite this rapid growth, the lungfish genome has remained surprisingly stable. This stability offers scientists a unique opportunity to reconstruct the genetic makeup of the early tetrapods, the first vertebrates to walk on land. Such insights could provide valuable information about how these ancient creatures adapted to terrestrial life, paving the way for the evolution of amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

This breakthrough in genomic research not only sets a new record but also deepens our understanding of the genetic foundations of life on land, offering a glimpse into the distant past of our own evolutionary history.