Twenty-eight specimens obtained either from organ bundles in the body cavities of intact mummies, from damaged mummies, or from isolated canopic jars were examined for tissue identification and histopathologic study. The methods of rehydration and fixation were optimized by application to 40 dehydrated modern samples before studies of mummified tissue were undertaken. The tissue of origin could be definitely identified in 24 of the 28 specimens. Even small fragments obtained from isolated canopic jars proved suitable for histologic study. Six lung specimens were selected for more detailed study. All six showed focal deposition of anthracotic pigment. Electron diffraction and electron microprobe analysis of one of the small, polarizable crystals associated with the anthracosis indicated a mineral content of silica, aluminum, and iron. Two specimens showed focal areas of calcification consistent with old mycobacterial disease. Other histopathologic findings included evidence of pulmonary edema, emphysema, and pneumonia.
We report on the morphological and trace element findings of several internal organs from an Egyptian mummy approximately dating from the year 950 B.C. according to 14C-analysis. By use of a multidisciplinary approach we succeeded in discovering evidence for severe and presumably recurrent pulmonary bleeding during life. This was suggested by the finding of massive haemosiderin deposits in the lung and a selectively and markedly elevated level of iron in trace element analysis of the lung tissue. Furthermore, we observed an enhanced deposition of birefringent particles in the lung tissue, without significant fibrosis. The histological analysis of liver, stomach and intestine confirmed the macroscopic organ diagnoses without evidence of any major pathological processes. In addition, analysis for various drugs revealed a significant deposition of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), nicotine and cocaine in several organs of the mummy. The concentration profiles additionally provide evidence for a preferential inhalation of THC, while nicotine and cocaine containing drugs seem to have been consumed orally.
We investigated the immunohistochemical presence of various collagen types in bone and cartilage tissue from an infant Peruvian mummy dating between 500 and 1000 A.D. which had been excavated at the necropolis of Las Trancas in the Nazca region in Peru. Following careful rehydration and decalcification of the tissue, the mummy tissue showed morphologically good preservation of the matrix, which could be shown to be composed of various collagen types in a typical pattern. Bone consisted of a collagen I matrix with a small rim of collagen III and V at the endosteal lining and a pericellular collagen V staining around osteocytic holes. In the hypertrophic cartilage of the epiphyseal growth plate, a typical pattern of collagen types II and X could be found. These observations provide evidence that in well-preserved mummy tissue the antigenic determinants of major matrix components are still adequately preserved for an immunohistochemical analysis. This technique may thus be a very helpful tool for the analysis of pathologic processes of historic bone tissue. It may also allow in certain circumstances a distinction between pseudopathologic tissue destruction and pathologic tissue alteration.
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