Bartonella quintana in a 4000-year-old human tooth.
Bacteria of the genus Bartonella are transmitted by ectoparasites (lice, fleas, ticks) and have mammalian reservoirs in which they cause chronic, asymptomatic bacteremia. Humans are the reservoir of B. quintana, the louse-borne agent of trench fever. We detected DNA of B. quintana in the dental pulp of a person who died 4000 years ago.
Drancourt
Michel
M
Unite des Rickettsies, CNR UMR 6020, IFR 48, Marseille, France.
Tran-Hung
Lam
L
Courtin
Jean
J
Lumley
Henry de
Hd
Raoult
Didier
D
D018413:Bartonella quintana / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry; D003782:Dental Pulp / Q000382:microbiology*; D005602:France; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D008963:Molar / Q000382:microbiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010161:Paleodontology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
D004269:DNA, Bacterial