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Related Experiment Videos

Did ice-age bovids spread tuberculosis?

Bruce M Rothschild1, Larry D Martin

  • 1Arthritis Center of Northeast Ohio, 5500 Market Street, Youngstown, OH 44512, USA. bmr@ku.edu

Die Naturwissenschaften
|August 10, 2006
PubMed
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Tuberculosis in ancient mammals was primarily spread by immigrant bovids from Eurasia to North America during the Pleistocene. These bovids, along with mastodons, developed an accommodation with the disease, facilitating its wider transmission.

Area of Science:

  • Paleontology
  • Paleopathology
  • Veterinary Science

Background:

  • Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) is a significant infectious disease.
  • Skeletal lesions, specifically metacarpal undermining, are linked to tuberculosis in bovids.
  • Understanding ancient disease transmission is crucial for evolutionary and ecological insights.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the presence and spread of tuberculosis in pre-Holocene North American mammals.
  • To identify potential animal vectors involved in the Holarctic spread of tuberculosis during the Pleistocene.

Main Methods:

  • Examination of postcranial skeletons (artiodactyl, perissodactyl, carnivore) from major North American and European museum collections.
  • Analysis of bone lesions for evidence of tuberculosis and other pathologies.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Focus on pre-Holocene mammal samples, including Oligocene, Miocene, and Plio-Pleistocene specimens.

    • Main Results:

    • Tuberculosis-indicative bone lesions were exclusively found in immigrant bovids from Eurasia among pre-Holocene North American non-proboscidean mammals.
    • No compatible lesions were identified in large samples of other pre-Holocene North American mammals, including antilocaprids.
    • Bovids exhibited a stable frequency of tubercular disease during the Pleistocene, suggesting accommodation rather than high mortality.

    Conclusions:

    • Immigrant bovids likely acted as vectors for the spread of tuberculosis across the Holarctic during the Pleistocene.
    • Bovids and mastodons developed a unique accommodation with tuberculosis, enabling their long-term survival and disease propagation.
    • Further research is needed on proboscidean tuberculosis, but current evidence points to bovids as key culprits in disease spread.