Possible cause of early colonial-era Mexican epidemic identified
Salmonella enterica, the bacterium responsible for enteric fever, may be the long-debated cause of the 1545-1550 AD 'cocoliztli' epidemic in Oaxaca, Mexico, that heavily affected the native population
Date:
January 15, 2018
Source:
Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History
Summary:
Researchers have used new methods in ancient DNA research to identify Salmonella enterica Paratyphi C, a pathogen that causes enteric fever, in the skeletons of victims of the 1545-1550 cocoliztli epidemic in Mexico, identifying a possible cause of this devastating colonial epidemic.
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FULL STORY
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/01/180115120545.htm
