Treponematosis and Anthropology

Hudson, Ellis Herndon

doi:10.7326/0003-4819-58-6-1037

Cited by 38 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…European contacts with the New World in the form of Viking expeditions from Greenland have been proposed as an explanation, but this is not supported by existing historical or skeletal evidence (Mays et al, 2003). Another explanation could be the introduction of syphilis in Europe by the pilgrims and crusaders that marched to the Near East during the Crusades (Hudson, 1963). These took place during the 11th-13th centuries, greatly enhancing human and trade flow between Europe and south-west Asia (Lewis, 1991).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Treponemal disease in the Old World? Integrated palaeopathological assessment of a 9th–11th century skeleton from north-central Spain

López

Lopez-Garcia

Costilla

et al. 2017

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The hypothesis of an American origin of acquired (venereal) syphilis and other infectious diseases carried by Columbus's crew has been considered for a long time as the most plausible one, and has been supported recently by considerable anthropological and molecular evidence. According to this line of thought, it can be argued that Spain would have been the gateway of acquired syphilis, which quickly expanded after the return of Columbus in the late 15th century. However, the hypothesis that syphilis previously existed in Europe but went unrecognized has also been considered by many authors. The present work reports one Pre-Columbian putative case of venereal syphilis found in a Spanish necropolis and radiocarbon dated to the 9th-11th century. The complexities of carrying out accurate diagnoses in remains from archaeological timeframes are addressed by the combined use of palaeopathological, medical, and histological techniques. The results, which point toward third-stage acquired syphilis, spark discussion about the need to revisit or complement the theories and hypothesis on the origin of syphilis in the light of a growing body of cases from European historical populations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Treponemal disease in the Old World? Integrated palaeopathological assessment of a 9th–11th century skeleton from north-central Spain

López

Lopez-Garcia

Costilla

et al. 2017

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“…Proposed by Hudson in 1963 on the basis of skeletal signs of disease, the Unitarian hypothesis states that all venereal and nonvenereal treponematoses are caused by the same pathogen and that the distinct clinical manifestations associated with these diseases are due primarily to differences in climatic conditions of the area where the disease is contracted and to social habits of the residing population (93,94). According to Hudson, treponematoses originated in the humid and hot climate of sub-Saharan Africa during the Paleolithic era, primarily affecting children and being transmitted through skin-to-skin contact.…”

Section: The Unitarian Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the tropical areas of the Americas, the disease would again manifest as "yaws." Since ϳ4,000 BC, the improvements in personal and community hygiene that followed urbanization allowed more and more individuals to reach sexual maturity without prior exposure to treponemes, so that the sexual route became an important mode of transmission, resulting in the manifestations that we commonly associate with venereal syphilis (93,94).…”

Section: The Unitarian Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As mentioned above, the Unitarian hypothesis on the origin of treponematoses states that the agents of syphilis, yaws, bejel, and pinta are in reality the same microorganism and that differences in disease manifestations reflect climatic and social differences inherent to the region in which the disease is contracted (93,94). Could the very low genomic diversity (ϳ0.2%) among the syphilis and yaws strains examined to date be used to argue that, indeed, these pathogens are the same?…”

Section: A Critical Assessment Of the Unitarian Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Endemic Treponematoses

2014

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SUMMARY The agents of human treponematoses include four closely related members of the genus Treponema : three subspecies of Treponema pallidum plus Treponema carateum . T. pallidum subsp. pallidum causes venereal syphilis, while T. pallidum subsp. pertenue , T. pallidum subsp. endemicum , and T. carateum are the agents of the endemic treponematoses yaws, bejel (or endemic syphilis), and pinta, respectively. All human treponematoses share remarkable similarities in pathogenesis and clinical manifestations, consistent with the high genetic and antigenic relatedness of their etiological agents. Distinctive features have been identified in terms of age of acquisition, most common mode of transmission, and capacity for invasion of the central nervous system and fetus, although the accuracy of these purported differences is debated among investigators and no biological basis for these differences has been identified to date. In 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially set a goal for yaws eradication by 2020. This challenging but potentially feasible endeavor is favored by the adoption of oral azithromycin for mass treatment and the currently focused distribution of yaws and endemic treponematoses and has revived global interest in these fascinating diseases and their causative agents.

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“…What might cause a disease to evolve in this way? A few authors have suggested that syphilis evolved to become less virulent (Hudson 1963(Hudson , 1965Guerra 1978; see also Garnett & Holmes 1996), but none has put forward a plausible mechanism for the change in virulence. To do so, we have to consider the selective consequences of virulence to the disease agent.…”

Section: Mechanisms Leading To Changes In Virulencementioning

confidence: 99%

Syphilis in Renaissance Europe: rapid evolution of an introduced sexually transmitted disease?

Knell

2004

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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When syphilis f irst appeared in Europe in 1495, it was an acute and extremely unpleasant disease. After only a few years it was less severe than it once was, and it changed over the next 50 years into a milder, chronic disease. The severe early symptoms may have been the result of the disease being introduced into a new host population without any resistance mechanisms, but the change in virulence is most likely to have happened because of selection favouring milder strains of the pathogen. The symptoms of the virulent early disease were both debilitating and obvious to potential sexual partners of the infected, and strains that caused less obvious or painful symptoms would have enjoyed a higher transmission rate.

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Treponematosis and Anthropology

Cited by 38 publications

References 11 publications

Treponemal disease in the Old World? Integrated palaeopathological assessment of a 9th–11th century skeleton from north-central Spain

Treponemal disease in the Old World? Integrated palaeopathological assessment of a 9th–11th century skeleton from north-central Spain

The Endemic Treponematoses

Syphilis in Renaissance Europe: rapid evolution of an introduced sexually transmitted disease?

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