BEIJING, July 15 (Xinhuanet) -- Remnants of the bacterium that causes ulcers (Helicobacter pylori) were discovered in gastric tissue from two Mexican mummies believed to predate Columbus' discovery of the New World.
"It is only through the use of the stomach tissue of these incredible mummies that we were able to make this discovery," said researcher Yolanda L¨°pez-Vidal. "Infection is established when the micro-organism infiltrates the stomach lining and induces a local inflammatory response. This is unlike colonization, which does not cause such a response and does not occur in the stomach."
This is the first time that H. pylori infection has been shown to occur in native populations, L¨°pez-Vidal said. The research is detailed in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Microbiology.
"Our results show that H. pylori infections occurred around 1350 A.D. in the area we now know as Mexico," L¨°pez-Vidal said. Her research team included colleagues at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
Mummification, or the preservation of a body in the process of putrefaction, can take place as a result of environmental effects (such as climate or where the body is left) or as a result of human intervention, as in the case of the mummies found in Egyptian pyramids. In Mexico, mummies are found in dry places such as caves and rock shelters, where rapid dehydration occurs. The internal organs are the last to dehydrate, L¨°pez-Vidal wrote.
The mummies for this research were recovered in a funeral cave of La Ventana, in the Chihuahua State desert, and in a cave in the state of Durango. The helix-shaped bacteria is thought to be transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with fecal matter.
(Agencies)
