Ancient genomes lack the virulence-associated Ypf prophage present in modern pandemic strains.

is the causative agent of at least three major plague pandemics (Justinianic, Medieval and Modern). Previous studies on ancient genomes revealed that several genomic alterations had occurred approximately 5000-3000 years ago and contributed to the remarkable virulence of this pathogen. How a subset of strains evolved to cause the Modern pandemic is less well-understood.

The association between skeletal lesions and tuberculosis in a pre-antibiotic South African sample.

Objective: This study assessed the sensitivity and specificity of skeletal lesions to accurately diagnose TB in a pre-antibiotic South African skeletal sample.

Materials: A total of 435 skeletons of individuals who died before 1950 from the Raymond A. Dart Collection of Human Skeletons.

Leprosy in medieval Denmark: Exploring life histories through a multi-tissue and multi-isotopic approach.

Objectives: By focusing on two Danish leprosaria (Naestved and Odense; 13th-16th c. CE) and using diet and origin as proxies, we follow a multi-isotopic approach to reconstruct life histories of patients and investigate how leprosy affected both institutionalized individuals and the medieval Danish community as a whole.

Materials And Methods: We combine archaeology, historical sources, biological anthropology, isotopic analyses (δ C, δ N, δ S, Sr/ Sr) and radiocarbon dating, and further analyze bones with different turnover rates (ribs and long bones).

A millennium of population change in pre-modern Danish Ribe.

Denmark experienced major socioeconomic changes, including overall population growth, during the Viking, medieval and post-medieval periods from ca. AD 800 to 1800. Archaeological skeletons provide a unique perspective on the population structure of Ribe, a Danish town in Jutland, during the millennium that immediately precedes the industrialization of northern Europe.

Impact of urbanization on tuberculosis and leprosy prevalence in medieval Denmark.

The consequences of urbanization, such as increased exposure to pathogens, have long been considered detrimental to human health. During the first half of the Danish medieval period, towns were established and throughout the period population increased. The following study analyzes the relationship between urbanization and disease frequency - specifically leprosy and tuberculosis - in four skeletal samples from medieval Denmark using a paleoepidemiological approach.

The association between skeletal lesions and tuberculosis diagnosis using a probabilistic approach.

Sensitivity and specificity estimates for 18 skeletal lesions were generated from modern skeletons for future paleoepidemiological analyses of tuberculosis prevalence in archaeological samples. A case-control study was conducted using 480 skeletons from 20 century American skeletal collections. One-half of the skeletons were documented tuberculosis cases (Terry Collection).

Tuberculosis in medieval and early modern Denmark: A paleoepidemiological perspective.

Millions of people worldwide have sickened and died from tuberculosis in recent centuries. Yet for most of human existence, the impact of tuberculosis on society is largely unknown. It is, indeed, unknowable without methods suitable for estimating disease prevalence in skeletal samples.

Ancient genomes reveal a high diversity of Mycobacterium leprae in medieval Europe.

Studying ancient DNA allows us to retrace the evolutionary history of human pathogens, such as Mycobacterium leprae, the main causative agent of leprosy. Leprosy is one of the oldest recorded and most stigmatizing diseases in human history. The disease was prevalent in Europe until the 16th century and is still endemic in many countries with over 200,000 new cases reported annually.