Elsevier

Microbes and Infection

Volume 11, Issues 14–15, December 2009, Pages 1156-1162
Microbes and Infection

Review
Human tuberculosis – an ancient disease, as elucidated by ancient microbial biomolecules

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micinf.2009.08.008Get rights and content
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Abstract

Tuberculosis is a major cause of death but infected people with effective immunity may remain healthy for years, suggesting long-term co-existence of host and pathogen. Direct detection and characterisation of ancient microbial DNA and lipid biomarkers confirms palaeopathological diagnoses. Archaeological Mycobacterium tuberculosis resembles extant lineages indicating the timescale for evolutionary changes is considerably longer than originally believed.

Keywords

Ancient DNA
Lipid biomarkers
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Palaeogenetics
Palaeomicrobiology

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