The bubonic plague is most often associated with its deadly impact on Europe in the 14th century, but traces of the plague plague bacterium It has also been found in 5,000-year-old human bones found in modern-day Russia. But thanks to a recent analysis, researchers believe they have confirmed the first known case of plague outside Eurasia. It is a 3,290-year-old ancient Egyptian mummy.
plague bacteriumAlso known as the Black Death, this disease is one of the most notorious diseases in history. Bubonic plague, which is usually transmitted by fleas that mount rodents, attacks the lymphatic system and initially causes flu-like symptoms several days after infection. From there, things get much more severe and often deadly. Lymph nodes in the groin, armpits, and neck begin to swell painfully, and infected victims develop high fevers, chills, and even seizures. Hematemesis (vomiting of blood) begins, and the lymph nodes become swollen, form buboes, and often rupture. Internal bleeding leaves most areas bruised and necrotic. This symptom gave the plague its nickname, “The Black Death.” Without proper treatment with modern antibiotics, 30-90% of patients may eventually die from the disease.
Apart from spreading throughout Europe between 1346 and 1353; Bubonic plague is thought to be the root cause This refers to the Justinian Plague that occurred in the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century AD, and the third plague that occurred throughout China, Mongolia, and India in 1855. European Congress of Paleopathological Societies, plague bacterium It has been confirmed that it existed in ancient Egypt at least at some point.
The research team came to this conclusion after examining mummies from the Egizio Museum in Italy that date back to the Second Intermediate Period or early New Kingdom. Researchers found that DNA extracted from both intestinal contents and bone tissue contained trace amounts of plague bacteriumThis suggests that the victims endured an advanced stage of the plague before dying.
“This is the first reported prehistoric thing.” plague bacterium “We analyzed genomes from outside Eurasia and provided molecular evidence for the presence of plague in ancient Egypt,” the researchers wrote in their paper. Presentation summary.
Experts have theorized about the existence of bubonic plague in ancient Egypt for decades. as IFL Science Memo, 2004 research team Thousands of years old fleas discovered At the ruins of Amarna on the banks of the Nile. This is combined with a 3,500-year-old Egyptian medical text that is known to read: [whose] Scientists believe that the Black Death reached communities along the riverbanks thousands of years ago. However, without direct evidence, plague bacteriumthe theory remained unproven. However, the discovery of remains of bubonic plague in mummified DNA appears to finally provide evidence that bubonic plague existed in ancient Egypt.
I’m not sure how widespread the team is plague bacterium Although still new to the region, they hope their findings will help other researchers “study virulence-related genes and characterize possible modes of infection and pathology.”
