A team of international researchers has made a groundbreaking discovery in Siberia, uncovering the earliest evidence of a plague outbreak. The study, published in the journal Nature, reveals that the disease spread through raw marmots and affected hunter-gatherer tribes around 5,500 years ago.
The researchers, led by Ruairidh Macleod from the University of Oxford, analysed ancient DNA collected from the remains of hunter-gatherers buried at four cemeteries on the Angara River. They found that 39% of the 42 hunter-gatherers tested contained Y pestis DNA, a higher proportion than is seen in some medieval plague pits.
The study suggests that the disease spread through raw marmots, a practice that still causes plague deaths today. The researchers believe that the disease spread from person to person, decimating families and others in close contact. The study also reveals that the plague was particularly lethal for children, with at least two-thirds of the dead at two of the cemeteries under 15 years old.
The discovery provides new insights into the origins of the plague and its impact on ancient societies. It also raises questions about the spread of diseases in the past and the impact on human populations.