Ancient Smallpox Genomes Hint at Less Deadly Strains in 16th-Century Chile
TL;DR
Researchers analyzing 500-year-old Chilean skeletons have recovered ancient smallpox genomes, the first from the Americas, suggesting early strains may have been less deadly than later global variants and offering clues about how the virus evolved before it became a worldwide killer (study published in Science).
- ‘This Is Very Strange’: Ancient Smallpox May Have Been Less Deadly The New York Times
- Smallpox DNA is recovered from Spanish conquest-era Chilean mummies Reuters
- Unearthing History: The Lethal Legacy of Smallpox in the Americas Devdiscourse
- Ancient mummy DNA provides scientific evidence that colonization brought smallpox to the Americas The Washington Post
- Smallpox DNA in ancient Inca mummies shows virus came from Europe New Scientist
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