Ancient Teeth Reveal Long-lasting Pathogen Signals

Researchers have successfully extracted intact and biologically active antibodies from 800-year-old teeth, providing a new method to identify pathogens that our ancestors encountered. This breakthrough in paleoproteomics could help understand the development of human antibodies throughout history and shed light on ancient diseases. The antibodies recovered from the teeth were able to recognize the Epstein-Barr virus, demonstrating their potential to study diseases from different time periods. This study sets a precedent for further research into the evolution of diseases and our immune system.