Ten Thousand Years of Head Lice Infection

Food, parasites, and epidemiological transitions: A broad perspective

“…Based on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) data, human head lice (P. humanus) separated from Chimpanzee head lice (Pediculus schaeffi) about 5.6 million years ago (Reed et al, 2004). The world's oldest known direct head louse association -nits on human hair -was found at a 10,000 year old archaeological site in northeast Brazil (Araújo et al, 2000). The intestinal helminths mentioned above and head lice were dispersed by human migrations to other parts of the world whenever and wherever climatic conditions allowed maintenance of the parasites' life cycles.…”

Techniques of DNA-studies on prehispanic ectoparasites (Pulex sp., Pulicidae, Siphonaptera) from animal mummies of the Chiribaya Culture, Southern Peru

“…Later, New World mummies were found to be infected with head, body (P. humanus humanus) and pubic lice (Phtirus pubis) (Ewing 1924, Araujo et al 2000. Flea specimens have been found occasionally among Eskimo mummies in Greenland and the Arctic (Lynnerup, pers.…”

On head lice and social interaction in archaic Andean coastal populations

“…Although Zinsser and Ewing highlighted the potential of population-based studies, such potential went unexplored for decades. Recently, a series of case reports have been published, drawing on small, or single mummy samples (Araújo et al, 2000;Arriaza et al, 2012aArriaza et al, , 2012bRaoult et al, 2008;Rivera et al, 2008). Most studies were not quantitative, but were successful in painting a general picture of the arrival of head lice in the New World.…”

“…Most studies were not quantitative, but were successful in painting a general picture of the arrival of head lice in the New World. Araújo et al (2000) reported head lice from hair associated with an archaic human skeleton in northeastern Brazil. The finding was radiocarbon dated to more than 10,000 years ago indicating that the introduction of lice into the New World probably occurred with the earliest migrants.…”