Identification of Treponema pallidum Subspecies pallidum in a 200-Year-Old Skeletal Specimen

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 180; no. 6; pp. 2060 - 2063
• Main Authors: Kolman, Connie J., Centurion-Lara, Arturo, Lukehart, Sheila A., Owsley, Douglas W., Tuross, Noreen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01.12.1999; University of Chicago Press; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Antigens; Antigens, Bacterial - immunology; Bacterial diseases; Bacterial diseases of the genital system; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Bone and Bones - immunology; Bone and Bones - microbiology; Bone diseases; Bones; Concise Communications; DNA; DNA, Bacterial - analysis; DNA, Bacterial - isolation & purification; Easter I; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; History, 18th Century; Human bacterial diseases; Humans; Immunoglobulin G - analysis; Immunoglobulin G - immunology; Infectious diseases; Medical sciences; Nucleotide sequences; Polymerase chain reaction; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; Polynesia; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Specimens; Syphilis; Syphilis - diagnosis; Syphilis - history; Syphilis - microbiology; Treponema pallidum; Treponema pallidum - classification; Treponema pallidum - genetics; Treponema pallidum - immunology; Treponema pallidum - isolation & purification; Polynesia; Human; Spirochaetales; Antibody; Postmortem; Anthropology; Century 18th; Identification; Paleontology; Treponematosis; Infection; Sexually transmitted disease; DNA; Syphilis; Bacteriosis; Bacteria; Diagnosis; Bone; Treponemataceae; Detection; Spirachaetosis; Treponema pallidum
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1086/315151

Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, the causative agent of venereal syphilis, was detected in a 200-year-old skeletal specimen from Easter Island. An initial diagnosis of treponemal infection was confirmed by extensive purification of immunoglobulin that reacted strongly with T. pallidum antigen. Extracted DNA exhibited a single-base polymorphism that distinguished T.p. subsp. pallidum from 4 other human and nonhuman treponemes. Extensive precautions against contamination of the subject matter with modern treponemal DNA were employed, including analysis of archaeological and modern specimens in 2 geographically separate laboratories. Molecular determination of historical disease states by using skeletal material can significantly enhance our understanding of the pathology and spread of infectious diseases.