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Genomic Palaeoparasitology Traced the Occurrence of Taenia Asiatica in Ancient Iran (Sassanid Empire, 2Th Cent. Ce–6Th Cent. Ce) Publisher Pubmed



Askari Z1 ; Ruehli F2 ; Bouwman A2 ; Shariati V3 ; Naddaf SR4 ; Otranto D5, 6 ; Mascoma S7 ; Rezaeian M1 ; Boenke N8, 9 ; Stollner T8, 9 ; Aali A10 ; Mobedi I1 ; Mowlavi G1, 11
Authors

Source: Scientific Reports Published:2022


Abstract

Palaeoparasitology investigates parasitological infections in animals and humans of past distance by examining biological remains. Palaeofaeces (or coprolites) are biological remains that provide valuable information on the disease, diet, and population movements in ancient times. Today, advances in detecting ancient DNA have cast light on dark corners that microscopy could never reach. The archaeological site of the Chehrabad salt mine of Achaemenid (550–330 BC) and Sassanid (third–seventh century AD) provides remains of various biotic and abiotic samples, including animal coprolites, for multidisciplinary studies. In the present work, we investigated coprolites for helminth eggs and larvae by microscopy and traced their biological agents’ DNA by Next Generation Sequencing. Our results revealed various helminths, including Taenia asiatica, the species introduced in the 1990s. Implementing advanced modern molecular techniques like NGS gives a paramount view of pathogenic agents in space and time. © 2022, The Author(s).
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