New Evidence of Syphilis Existence Before Columbus: Genetic Findings in Europe and Americas

The first genetic evidence before Columbus

Recent research has made us look at syphilis and its history differently. For example, it has been shown that syphilis is only one of four diseases in the bacterial family treponemal. The other three – known as bejel, rasmboesia and pinta – are not STDs, but cause chronic infections in the mouth and skin.

That revelation opened new doors in tracing the origins of syphilis, as European and American scientists and archaeologists could now also search for the three related diseases. For example, they looked at changes in bones that are characteristic of the diseases.

Since 2020, this has led to 21 bone and tooth discoveries in Europe that suggest syphilis existed here before the voyages to South America. Being the eldest of two children in southern Italy, dated between 580 to 250 BC. Unfortunately, the bacterial genome could not be reconstructed here.

On the other side of the world, paleogeneticist Verena Schünemann from the University of Zurich has now obtained DNA from the bacterium T. pallidum endemic (bejel) found at an excavation site on the southern coast of Brazil, Jabuticabeira 2. This was home to an indigenous tribe that apparently contains the first genetic evidence for the existence of syphilis diseases in the Americas before Columbus arrived.

2024-01-27 14:25:51
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