Peruvian and Chilean mummies and coprolites provide a source of population-based parasitological information. This is especially true of the fish tapeworm, Adenocephalus pacificus. Our analysis of Chinchorro and Chiribaya mummies and diversified coprolite samples from Chile and Peru show variation in infection. There is a statistically significant difference in prevalence between Chinchorro hunter-gatherer and Chiribaya mixed-subsistence contexts. Furthermore, the most pronounced differences occur between populations within these groups. Chinchorro differences in cemeteries at the same location can be related to El Niño–Southern Oscillation variations. Pronounced prevalence variations between 3 Chiribaya villages within 7 km of each other relate to fish distribution and preparation variation. As with other recent archaeoparasitology studies, eggs-per-gram data exhibit overdispersion.
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29 November 2023
Paleoepidemiology of Diphyllobothriosis: Cultural and Environmental Factors Affecting Adenocephalus Intensity and Prevalence
Karl J. Reinhard,
Bernardo Arriaza,
William Alexander Avery,
Jane Buikstra,
Morgana Camacho,
Elizabeth Goodman,
John Obafunwa,
Bruce Owen,
Isabel Teixeira-Santos
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Journal of Parasitology
Vol. 109 • No. 6
December 2023
Vol. 109 • No. 6
December 2023
Adenocephalus pacificus
Andes
Chile
Diphyllobothriosis
Peru
