On the origin of American tuberculosis.
After more than a century of debate, it is now firmly established that tuberculosis existed in the New World before the arrival of Columbus. What is not yet known is how or when, exactly, the infection reached the Americas, how it spread from one continent to the other, and whether the pre-Columbian infection was caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis or Mycobacterium bovis.
Mackowiak
Philip A
PA
Veterans Affairs Maryland Health Care System, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Philip.Mackowiak@med.va.gov
Blos
Vera Tiesler
VT
Aguilar
Manuel
M
Buikstra
Jane E
JE
D000569:Americas; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000266:history*