Uncovering Beethoven's Health and Family Secrets through DNA Analysis.

Researchers have extracted DNA from strands of Ludwig van Beethoven's hair to investigate the health problems and hearing loss that plagued him. They found a genetic risk for liver disease, plus a liver-damaging hepatitis B infection in the last months of his life, which, along with his chronic drinking, were probably enough to cause the liver failure that is widely believed to have killed him. The study also revealed a discrepancy in the Y chromosomes of living members of the extended Beethoven family, suggesting an extramarital relationship in the composer's family tree. However, the key question of what caused Beethoven's hearing loss remains unanswered.