Most work on DNA restoration of ancient pathogens is associated with major epidemics: plague, virus
E. coli lives in the intestines of healthypeople and animals. While most forms are harmless, some strains cause serious, sometimes fatal outbreaks of food poisoning and bloodstream infections. The hardy and adaptable bacterium is found to be particularly resistant to treatment, the authors note. E. coli acts as an opportunistic pathogen that infects its host during times of stress, underlying illness, or immunodeficiency.
For their study, the scientists usedmummified remains of Giovanni d'Avalos. This Neapolitan Renaissance nobleman died in 1586 at the age of 48. His remains, among others, were discovered in 1983 in the Abbey of San Domenico Maggiore in Naples. Researchers assumed that the cause of death was chronic inflammation of the gallbladder due to stones in it.
When we examined these remains, there were noevidence that this person had E. coli. Unlike an infection such as smallpox, there are no physiological manifestations. Nobody knew what it was.
George Long, researcher at McMaster University, co-author of the paper
Scientists note that E. coli is widelydistributed in soil. Therefore, during the work it was necessary to carefully isolate ancient fragments of the target bacterium, which were destroyed under the influence of the environment.
Despite all the difficulties, the researchers managed to reconstruct the genome based on the extracted material. It consisted of one chromosome with 4446 genes and two putative plasmids with 52 genes.
Cover image: Division of Paleopathology of the University of Pisa
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