Paleoparasitology is the study of parasites and their interactions with hosts and vectors, from the past

1. PALEOPARASITOLOGY
Dr. Rajesh Karyakarte MD
Professor and Head,
Department of Microbiology,
Government Medical College, Akola
Maharashtra, India

2. WHAT IS PALEOPARASITOLOGY?
• Paleoparasitology is the study of parasites and
their interactions with hosts and vectors, from
the past
• Paleoparasitology can also be defined as the
study of parasites in archaeological material
• Paleoparasitology is a subfield of
Paleontology – the study of living organisms
from the past

3. ALTERNATIVE TERM
• Archaeoparasitology: the study of parasite evidence
from archaeological sites
• Reinhard further suggested that "the term
'Paleoparasitology' be applied to studies of
nonhuman, paleontological material." i.e., the study of
the parasites of non-human animals and plants from
the past, while study of parasites from humans and our
hominid ancestors are covered in archaeoparasitology

4. WHEN DID IT BEGIN?
• It began when Schistosoma haematobium eggs
were found in infected kidneys of Egyptian
mummies in 1910
Ruffer MA 1910. Note on the presence of Bilharzia haematobia in Egyptian mummies of the
Twentieth Dinasty (1250-1000 BC). Br Med J 1: 16.

5. FROM WHERE DO YOU GET THE SAMPLES?
• It is believed that parasites do not leave fossils
behind
• Nevertheless parasitic remains have been found
in 1.5 million years old paleontological sites, as
well as in 500,000 years old preserved organic
material

6. FROM WHERE DO YOU GET THE SAMPLES?
CONT.….
• Paleoparasitology samples are found in
environments where preservation is best :
• Moist anaerobic environment – Latrines
• Desiccating environment – caves and
rock-shelters in arid regions
Reinhard K, Confalonieri U, Ferreira LF, Herrmann B, Araújo A 1988. Recovery of parasite remains from
coprolites and latrines: aspects of paleoparasitological technique. Homo 37: 217-239.

7. OTHER SOURCES
• Fossils,
• Amber inclusions,
• Hair,
• Skins, and
• Feathers

8. WHAT ARE COPROLITES?
• Coprolites are desiccated or mineralized feces
• Special techniques are used to search for parasites in
coprolites
• Rehydration of desiccated coprolites with a trisodium
phosphate solution is required before the search for
parasites (Callen & Cameron 1960)
• Modified pollen analysis techniques are used for
fossilized coprolites (Reinhard et al. 1985)
Callen EO, Cameron TWM 1960. A prehistoric diet as revealed in coprolites. New Sci 8: 35-40.
Reinhard KJ, Ambler JR, Mcguffie M 1985. Diet and parasitism at Dust Devil Cave. Am Antiquity 50: 20-24.

9. FROM WHERE DO WE RECOVER COPROLITES?
• Coprolites can be recovered from :
• Archaeological layers or cesspits, and
• Directly from mummified bodies
• They are the main source for parasite remains

10. FROM WHERE DO WE RECOVER COPROLITES?
• To summarize:
• Desiccation and mineralization of coprolites
results in excellent preservation of parasite
larvae and eggs
• It is important to note that
• Protozoan cysts are rarely found in coprolites
(Ferreira et al. 1992)

11. FROM WHERE DO WE RECOVER COPROLITES?
CONT.….
• Helminth species that normally hatch out of their
eggs and leave feces are trapped by drying of
coprolites, providing records of :
• Hookworm (Araújo et al. 1981, Ferreira et al.
1987) and
• Strongyloides infection in ancient humans
(Reinhard et al. 1987)

12. WHO WERE THE PIONEERS?
• Cockburn (1967) was the first person to call
attention towards study of parasites in
coprolites, and
• This new field of
science, Paleoparasitology, was named by
Ferreira et al. (1979)
Cockburn A 1967. Infectious Diseases: their Evolution and their Erradication, Charles Thomas Publ., USA.
Ferreira LF, Araújo A, Confalonieri U 1979. Subsídios para a paleoparasitologia do Brasil: parasitos encontrados em
coprólitos no município de Unaí, MG. An V Congr Soc Bras Parasitol, p. 66.

13. EVIDENCE OF PALEOPARASITISM
• Helminths caught in amber during the process of escaping
from the body of an insect,
• Lice found in the fur of guinea pig mummies,
• Protozoans found in the alimentary canal of flies caught in
amber,
• Nematode larvae found embedded in animal coprolites, and
• Mite caught in amber during the process of apparently
feeding on a spider.

14. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY?
• Paleoparasitology and especially molecular
paleoparasitology offer new tools for the study of
ancient host-parasite relationship – its origin and
evolution

15. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY?
• Paleoparasitology helps in interpreting
archeological findings and making inferences
about the impact of parasitic diseases among
prehistoric populations
Reinhard KJ 1992. The impact of diet, and parasitism on anemia in the prehistoric West. In P Stuart-
McAdam, S Kent (eds), Demography and Disease: Changing Perspectives of Anemia, Aldine deGruyter,
New York, p. 219-258.

16. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY?
• In this regards, hunter-gatherers were found to
be less infected by helminths
Reinhard KJ 1992. The impact of diet, and parasitism on anemia in the prehistoric West. In P Stuart-
McAdam, S Kent (eds), Demography and Disease: Changing Perspectives of Anemia, Aldine
deGruyter, New York, p. 219-258.

18. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY?
• Agricultural groups showed comparatively higher
prevalence of intestinal parasites in
archaeological sites in the United States
Reinhard KJ 1992. The impact of diet, and parasitism on anemia in the prehistoric West. In P Stuart-
McAdam, S Kent (eds), Demography and Disease: Changing Perspectives of Anemia, Aldine
deGruyter, New York, p. 219-258.

20. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY? CONT.....1
• The finding of Diphyllobothrium pacificum eggs, a sea
lion parasite, in human coprolites dated of 6,000 years
before present (B.P.) told us about the food habits of
prehistoric inhabitants in the Chilean desert.
Ferreira LF, Araújo A, Confalonieri U, Nuñez L 1984. The finding of Diphyllobothrium in human
coprolites (4,100-1,950 BC) from northern Chile. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 79: 775-780.

21. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY? CONT.....2
• Heirloom parasites are well exemplified by Enterobius
vermicularis studies:
• This helminth infection was recorded in North
America dated up to 10,000 years B.P.
• E. vermicularis infection was found in cold
climates, in Greenland, dated 1400 A.D. (Anno
Domini), and
• In the South American Pacific coast from 4,000 to
2,000 years B.P.

22. WHAT DO WE FIND WITH THE HELP OF
PALEOPARASITOLOGY? CONT.....3
• Paleoparasitological human-parasite coevolutionary
studies show:
• The antiquity of parasite-host relationships, and
• Helps in tracing the origin and dispersion of infection
in prehistorical times
Confalonieri U, Ferreira LF, Araújo A 1991. Intestinal helminths in Lowland South American
indians: some evolutionary interpretations. Hum Biol 63: 865-875.

23. PALEOPARASITOLOGY AND PALEOGENETICS CAN ANSWER
QUESTIONS REGARDING HUMAN SETTLEMENT
• The finding of human hookworm and whipworm
eggs in pre-Columbian America raised an
interesting debate
• Both are geohelminths, with an obligatory
passage in the soil
• They can only maintain their biological cycle to
infect a new host if environmental conditions are
suitable

24. PALEOPARASITOLOGY AND PALEOGENETICS CAN ANSWER
QUESTIONS REGARDING HUMAN SETTLEMENT CONT.….1
• Hookworm eggs were found in human coprolites in
South American archaeological sites radiocarbon dated
as old as 7,200 years
• Trichuris trichiura eggs were found in the Andean
region and in the other side of the continent, in
Brazilian Northeast, dated 2,000 years B.P.
• In both cases, eggs were recovered from intestinal
contents of South American mummies

25. PALEOPARASITOLOGY AND PALEOGENETICS CAN ANSWER
QUESTIONS REGARDING HUMAN SETTLEMENT CONT.….2
• Prehistoric migrations of people from Arctic
region cannot introduce hookworm and
whipworm infection as warmth is required for soil
developing larvae
• Thus, cold climate and nearly frozen conditions
of the soil would have impaired larvae and eggs
to evolve and be transmissible to a new host.

26. PALEOPARASITOLOGY AND PALEOGENETICS CAN ANSWER
QUESTIONS REGARDING HUMAN SETTLEMENT CONT.….3
• Therefore, the paleoparasitological discovery of
these parasites in prehistoric South America
indicates that there was a non-arctic migration of
humans from the Old World to the Americas.
• Paleoparasitology together with
paleogenetics, is helping to sort this issue

27. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY
• In addition to the classical paleoparasitology
based on coprolite rehydration and microscopic
analysis after parasite concentration
techniques, molecular paleoparasitology is
growing as a powerful tool

28. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY CONT.….1
• Ancient DNA (aDNA) are nucleic acids
recovered from archaeological material or
museum specimens
• DNA can be recovered from human bones and
mummified tissues
• The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is now
applied in paleoparasitological analysis

29. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY CONT.….2
• PCR was used to detect Borrelia burgodorferi in
13 of 1,036 mite museum samples in the United
States, and
• For detecting Leishmania amazonensis in
taxidermized rodents from museum

30. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY CONT.….3
• PCR was used to study Mycobacterium
tuberculosis infection in mediaeval skeletons in
Europe, in a Peruvian precolumbian
mummy, and in Chilean prehistoric skeletons

31. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY CONT.….4
• Chagas disease is an excellent example for
application the Molecular paleoparasitology
• Trypanosoma cruzi DNA fragments were found
in South American mummies

32. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY CONT.….5
• Mummies are a scarce remain of ancient
cultures, but bones can be found more
abundantly
• Thus bones and skeletons of prehistoric
populations are now the focus of attempts to find
evidence of T. cruzi

33. MOLECULAR PALEOPARASITOLOGY CONT.….6
• Moreover, in most of the cases bones and
skeletons are the only available material for
analysis
• Molecular paleoparasitology is successful in
finding traces of a parasite that are not visible
under a microscopic

34. SUMMARY
• With the recognition of the importance of
understanding parasite evolution in the control of
modern diseases, paleoparasitology has a new
importance

35. SUMMARY CONT.…..1
• The understanding of parasite evolution can be
addressed by the combined approaches of
paleoparasitology and molecular
paleoparasitology

36. SUMMARY CONT.…..2
• With paleoparasitology, one can document the
appearance of parasites in human prehistory

37. SUMMARY CONT.…..3
• With molecular paleoparasitology, one can
potentially identify the change in parasite
genomes that resulted from the host-parasite
interaction

38. SUMMARY CONT.…..4
• Paleoparasitology has also helped to solve
riddles in fields other than parasitology
Examples include:
• Migration and phylogeography of marine
mammal hosts

39. SUMMARY CONT.…..5
• Identity of domestic animal bones from parasite
remains found at the archaeological site, and
• The effect of climatic changes on genetic
diversity found in animal host