Scientists discover and sequence ancient herpesviral genomes that commonly cause mouth sores

The ancient genome of the herpes virus, which commonly causes mouth sores and currently infects approximately 3.7 billion people worldwide, was first discovered and sequenced by an international team of scientists led by the University of Cambridge.

According to the latest research, the HSV-1 virus strain behind facial herpes that we know today is the result of the massive migration of the Eurasian step meadows to Europe during the Bronze Age and the resulting population boom. It has been suggested that it occurred about 5000 years ago. transmission.

Herpes has a history dating back millions of years, and the form of the virus infects species from bats to corals. But despite its prevalence among modern humans, scientists say it was surprisingly difficult to find an ancient example of HSV-1.

Authors of studies published in journals Science AdvancesSays that the Neolithic prosperity of facial herpes detected in ancient DNA may have coincided with the emergence of new cultural practices imported from the east: romantic and sexual kisses.

The world has seen COVID-19 mutate rapidly over weeks to months. Viruses like herpes evolve on a much more spectacular timescale. “

Dr. Charlotte Holdcroft, Co-Chief Author of the Faculty of Genetics, Cambridge

“Facial herpes is hidden in the host for life and is transmitted only by oral contact, so mutations occur slowly over centuries to thousands of years. How these DNA viruses evolve. To understand, we need to do a detailed investigation, “she said. “Previously, herpes genetic data dates back to 1925.”

The team has successfully hunted down herpes from the bodies of four people who have grown over 1000 years and extracted viral DNA from the roots of their teeth. Herpes often burns with mouth infections: at least two of the ancient corpses suffered from periodontal disease and the third smoked cigarettes.

The oldest sample is from an adult male excavated in the Ural Mountains region of Russia, dating back to the late Iron Age, about 1,500 years ago.

Two more samples were in Cambridge, England.A woman from an early Anglo-Saxon cemetery a few miles south of the city, 6-7 years old^th AD century. Another young adult male from late 14 years old^th In the century, he was buried on the grounds of a medieval Cambridge charity hospital (later to St. John’s University), which suffered from a horrific tooth abscess.

The final sample was from a young adult male excavated in the Netherlands. He is an avid clay pipe smoker and may have been slaughtered in 1672 when the banks of the Rhine attacked his village from France.

Dr. Merriam Geril, co-author of the Institute for Genomics, University of Tartu, said:

“By comparing ancient DNA with 20 herpes samples^th In the century, we were able to analyze the differences and estimate mutation rates, which in turn could estimate the timeline of viral evolution, “said Dr Lucyvan Dorp, co-author of the UCL Genetics Institute. I am.

Dr. Christiana Scheive, Research Fellow at St. John’s College at the University of Cambridge and Head of the Ancient DNA Lab at the University of Tartu, said: We because our own seeds have left Africa. “

“But something happened about 5000 years ago, and one strain of herpes was able to overtake all other strains. It’s probably an increase in infection and may be related to kissing. . “

Researchers point out that the earliest known record of kisses is a Bronze Age manuscript from South Asia, where customs that are not universal in human culture may have moved west with migration from Eurasia to Europe. It suggests that there is sex.

In fact, centuries later, Roman emperor Tiberius sought to ban kissing at official events to prevent the spread of the disease. This is a law that may be related to herpes. However, in most of human prehistoric times, HSV-1 infections were “vertical.” That is, the same strain was transmitted from the infected mother to the newborn.

According to the World Health Organization, two-thirds of the world’s population under the age of 50 have HSV-1. For most of us, the resulting occasional mouth sore is embarrassing and unpleasant, but when combined with other illnesses (such as sepsis and COVID-19), the virus can be fatal. In 2018, two women died of HSV-1 infection in the United Kingdom after a Caesarean section.

“Only genetic samples hundreds or thousands of years old can understand how DNA viruses such as herpes and monkeypox, and our own immune system, adapt to each other,” Houldcroft said. Mr. says.

The team wants to further track down this robust primitive disease to investigate early Hominini infections. “Neanderthal herpes is my next climb,” Scheib added.