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Ancient tuberculosis and lipid chemistry – odd bedfellows!

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2017

J.E. Redman ,
M.I. Stewart  and
A.M. Gernaey
J.E. Redman*
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry, University of Newcastle, UK
M.I. Stewart*
Affiliation:
Dyson Perrins Laboratory, University of Oxford, UK
A.M. Gernaey*
Affiliation:
Fossil Fuels and Environmental Geochemistry, University of Newcastle, UK
*
[email: janetredman@hotmail.com]
[email: malcolm.stewart@chem.ox.ac.uk]
[email: a.m.gernaey@salford.ac.uk]
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Abstract

Tuberculosis (TB), the disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, has afflicted mankind for millennia. Currently, the diagnosis of TB from archaeological specimens relies on the identification of bone changes. This method is problematic, since the bone changes seen in TB are not exclusive to the disease. Here, we examine the state-of-the-art of ancient TB diagnosis using the biomarker approach. The development of biomarkers for the detection of ancient TB will provide a reliable means of diagnosis and provide archaeology with a useful tool for the investigation of the disease in archaeological populations.

La tuberculose (TB), maladie causée par le myobacterium tuberculosis, afflige l'humanité depuis des millénaires. Actuellement, la diagnose de TB en archéologie repose sur l'identification de changements osseux des squelettes. Cette méthode est douteuse, car ces modifications accompagnant la TB ne sont pas exclusivement liées à cette maladie. Dans cet article, nous examinons la meilleure méthode à ce jour pour diagnostiquer une TB ancienne, à savoir la méthode des marqueurs biologiques. Le développement de ces marqueurs pour la détection de TB ancienne nous donnera un moyen aûr de diagnose et fournira à l'archéologie un outil utile pour déterminer la maladie dans les populations archéologiques.

Zusammenfassung

Zusammenfassung

Tuberkulose (TB), die durch Myobacterium tuberculosis verursachte Erkrankung, hat die Menschheit seit Jahrtausenden gepeinigt. Bislang beruht die Feststellung von TB an archäologischem Skelettmaterial auf der Diagnose von Veränderungen an der Knochensubstanz. Diese Methode ist jedoch problematisch, da derartige Knochenveränderungen nicht allein für TB charakteristisch sind. In diesem Beitrag behandeln wir den Forschungsstand der Identifizierung alter TB anhand des Biomarker-Verfahrens. Die Entwicklung von Biomarkern wird für die Erkennung alter TB ein zuverlässiges Diagnoseverfahren liefern und die Archäologie mit einem nützlichen Hilfsmittel zur Erforschung dieser Krankheit in archäologischen Populationen versehen.

Keywords

ancient diseasebone changelaboratory diagnosislipid biomarkerstuberculosischangement osseuxdiagnose en laboratoiremaladie anciennemarqueurs biologiques sur base de lipidestuberculosealte ErkrankungKnochenveränderungLabordiagnoseLipid-BiomarkerTuberkulose
Type
Articles
Information
European Journal of Archaeology , Volume 5 , Issue 1 , 2002 , pp. 112 - 120
Copyright
Copyright © 2002 Sage Publications 

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