Parasitic infections and resource economy of Danish Iron Age settlement through ancient DNA sequencing (original) (raw)
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High-resolution insight into parasitic infections and diet of past populations in Northern Europe and the Middle East (500 BC-1700 AD) was obtained by pre-concentration of parasite eggs from ancient latrines and deposits followed by shotgun sequencing of DNA. Complementary profiling of parasite, vertebrate and plant DNA proved highly informative in the study of ancient health, human-animal interactions as well as animal and plant dietary components. Most prominent were finding of soil-borne parasites transmitted directly between humans, but also meat-borne parasites that require consumption of raw or undercooked fish and pork. The detection of parasites for which sheep, horse, dog, pig, and rodents serves as definitive hosts are clear markers of domestic and synanthropic animals living in closer proximity of the respective sites. Finally, the reconstruction of full mitochondrial parasite genomes from whipworm (Ascaris lumbricoides) and roundworm species (Trichuris trichiura and Trichuris muris) and estimates of haplotype frequencies elucidates the genetic diversity and provides insights into epidemiology and parasite biology.
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2018
Throughout history, humans have been afflicted by parasitic worms, and eggs are readily detected in archaeological deposits. This study integrated parasitological and ancient DNA methods with a large sample set dating between Neolithic and Early Modern periods to explore the utility of molecular archaeoparasitology as a new approach to study the past. Molecular analyses provided unequivocal species-level parasite identification and revealed location-specific epidemiological signatures. Faecal –oral transmitted nematodes (Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichiura) were ubiquitous across time and space. By contrast, high numbers of food-associated cestodes (Diphyllobothrium latum and Taenia saginata) were restricted to medieval Lü beck. The presence of these cestodes and changes in their prevalence at approximately 1300 CE indicate substantial alterations in diet or parasite availability. Trichuris trichiura ITS-1 sequences grouped into two clades; one ubiquitous and one restricted to medieval Lü beck and Bristol. The high sequence diversity of T.t.ITS-1 detected in Lü beck is consistent with its importance as a Hanseatic trading centre. Collectively, these results introduce molecular archaeoparasitology as an artefact-independent source of historical evidence.
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2018
Eggs from an intestinal parasite has been found in a burial radiocarbon dated to 5210-4840 cal BC in Motala, east-central Sweden. The two helminth eggs are identified as Trichuris trichiura (human whipworm). Control samples from the cemetery site were all negative and confirmed that there was no evident contamination of younger material. This discovery raises new questions concerning the early geographical spread and timing of parasitic diseases among hunter-gatherer societies in northern Europe, and in the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere. Whipworm infection (Trichuriasis) is perhaps the disease most associated with crowding and poor sanitation, and as it manifests itself in the youngest dated burial, it could be a contributing factor to the final abandonment of the Mesolithic settlement. Also, parasite eggs found in a soil sample from the Neolithic Alvastra pile dwelling could indicate the continued presence of the Trichuris parasite in east-central Sweden. Generally, parasite ecology can aid in reconstructing human behaviors that include aspects of sedentism, mobility, food preferences, hygiene and other social practices.
Scientific Reports
Palaeoparasitological studies can provide valuable information on the emergence, distribution, and elimination of parasites during a particular time in the past. In the prehistoric salt mines of Hallstatt, located in the Austrian Alps, human faeces have been conserved in salt. The aim of this study was to recover ancient DNA of intestinal parasites from these coprolites. Altogether, 35 coprolites from the Hallstatt salt mines, dating back to the Bronze Age mining phase (1158–1063 BCE) and the Iron Age mining phase (750–662 BCE), respectively, were analysed by microscopy and molecular methods. In 91% of the coprolite samples, eggs of soil-transmitted helminths (STH), namely of Trichuris and/or Ascaris were detected by light microscopy. The Ascaris eggs were exceptionally well preserved. For further analysis, DNA was extracted from the palaeofaecal samples and species-specific primers targeting different genes were designed. While amplification of Trichuris DNA remained unsuccessful, ...
Parasitology, 2019
Little is known about the types of intestinal parasites that infected people living in prehistoric Britain. The Late Bronze Age archaeological site of Must Farm was a pile-dwelling settlement located in wetland, consisting of stilted timber structures constructed over a slow- moving freshwater channel. At excavation, sediment samples were collected from occupation deposits around the timber structures. Fifteen coprolites were also hand-recovered from the occupation deposits; four were identified as human and seven as canine, using faecal lipid biomarkers. Digital light microscopy was used to identify preserved helminth eggs in the sediment and coprolites. Eggs of fish tapeworm (Diphyllobothrium latum and Diphyllobothrium dendriticum), Echinostoma sp., giant kidney worm (Dioctophyma renale), probable pig whipworm (Trichuris suis), and Capillaria sp. were found. This is the earliest evidence for fish tapeworm, Echinostoma worm, Capillaria worm, and the giant kidney worm so far identified in Britain. It appears that the wetland environment of the settlement contributed to establishing parasite diversity and put the inhabitants at risk of infection by helminth species spread by eating raw fish, frogs or molluscs that flourish in freshwater aquatic environments, conversely the wetland may also have protected them from infection by certain geohelminths.
Taphonomic considerations for the analysis of parasites in archaeological materials
Archaeoparasitological analyses of human remains can present interpretative challenges arising from diverse preservation environments. Three archaeoparasitological studies are used to demonstrate the impacts of five major types of taphonomic factors on parasite egg preservation. In the first case, an analysis of a historic Lithuanian mummy revealed infections with Trichuris trichiura and Ascaris lumbricoides and illustrates taphonomic issues unique to mummies. The second case involved the analysis of coprolites collected from medieval burials in Nivelles, Belgium. One burial demonstrated a high concentration of T. trichiura eggs (approximately 1,577,679 total eggs) and A. lumbricoides eggs (approximately 202,350 total eggs). Preservation was affected mostly by water percolation with differential preservation of eggs based on morphological characteristics. The third case is based on material from embalming jars of the Medici family. No parasite eggs were recovered; however, an abundance of mites and dipteran puparia were encountered, suggesting that arthropods may play a larger role in parasite egg preservation than previously supposed. Differential parasite egg preservation is discussed in light of variances in five major types of taphonomic factors: abiotic, contextual, anthropogenic, organismal, and ecological. Accounting for these factors is a vital component in the interpretation of archaeoparasitological data and should be included in future archaeoparasitological reports.
International Journal of Paleopathology, 2023
To characterize patterns in the taxonomic diversity of parasites infecting the population of Aalst, Belgium, between the 12th and 17th centuries. Materials: 14 sediment samples from seven cesspits dated 1100-1700 CE. Methods: Digital light microscopy and Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: We identified eggs of four species of helminths: whipworm (Trichuris trichiura), roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides), Echinostoma fluke and Dicrocoelium fluke. ELISA results for protozoal parasites were negative. Conclusions: Taxonomic diversity of parasite infections remained constant from the 12th to the 17th centuries. Roundworm and whipworm, spread by poor sanitation, were dominant. Two species of zoonotic parasites were also identified, including for the first time ever in the Low Countries the Echinostoma fluke, which may have been spread by eating uncooked freshwater animal foods. Significance: Analysis of sediment samples spanning such a broad chronology (six centuries) from a single city offers the opportunity to track diachronic change, which is rare in paleoparasitological studies. Limitations: We were unable to acquire samples from cesspits dating to the 14th century. Suggestions for further research: Additional data from other Low Countries towns may strengthen the patterns identified in this paper. A similar approach can be used to investigate towns in different regions of the world.