Posted on 01/27/2014 5:08:06 PM PST by John W
An international team of scientists has discovered that two of the most devastating pandemics in human history -- responsible for killing as much as half the population in Europe at the time -- were caused by strains of the same bacterium.
The researchers announced Monday that the Plague of Justinian and the Black Death were caused by distinct strains of the same pathogen, and warned that similar pandemics can strike again.
The Plague of Justinian struck in the 6th century and is estimated to have killed between 30 and 50 million people -- virtually half the world’s population as it spread across Asia, North Africa, parts of the Middle East and Europe.
The Black Death struck about 800 years later, killing an estimated 50 million Europeans between just 1347 and 1351 alone.
Researchers were able to isolate miniscule DNA fragments from the 1500-year-old teeth of two victims of the Plague of Justinian who were buried in Bavaria, Germany. They then reconstructed the genome of the oldest Yersinia pestis, the bacterium responsible for these plagues, and compared it to a database of genomes of more than a hundred contemporary strains.
The bacterium Yersinia pestis has jumped from rodents to humans throughout history, and Poinar said rodent reservoirs of plague still exist today in parts of Asia and Ukraine.
"What (the study) does seem to suggest is that obviously Yersinia pestis has this tremendous capability of emerging and re-emerging from these centres with these rodents," said Hendrik Poinar, director of the McMaster Ancient DNA Centre.
(Excerpt) Read more at ctvnews.ca ...
LOL!
If detected and recognized early and aggressively treated pneumonic
plague caused by Yersinia Pestis can be kept from becoming a pandemic.
Modern medicine can actually treat the plague with great success if caught early and public healyh measures can prevent it’s spread. The key is
early aggressive response. As with bird flu and other respiratory illnesses
that easily transfer via droplet/airborne means people infected and at risk
will have to exercise self control as in wear masks, avoid travel and other acts that some idiots will view as an infringement of rights rather than an
exercise in personal responsibility. Pandemic lebels of illness may require
the imposition of some very unsavory controls to prevent spread.
Such impositions would grant unsavory characters an opportunity to abuse
their powers and trigger resistance to needed protocols in the name of
“Freedom”. Panic, death and destruction could follow.
And, what is the purpose to exhume plague victims and reconstruct the bacteria?
>> Hmmmm 800 year gap and the last time was roughly 800 years ago...
Suddenly I don’t feel so good... say, was that a throw-uppy plague? or a cough-chunks-of-your-lungs-out plague?
Another part of the problem with the black plague outbreak in the 14th century was the cultural bias against cats. popular folk beliefs had cats depicted as in league with the devil. In many towns cats were hunted down and eradicated. Unfortunately that allowed the vermin population to explode which made the plague situation exponentionally worse. Unintended consequences and all that.
CC
We need more plague victims...
The stated purpose is to better understand what makes a pandemic bacteria and better design vaccines and antibiotics against it.
It’s the kind spread by fleas and ticks, nervous ticks...
Naw, you have me confused with a newvirus tick. Different species.
Thank you all, Lightman, null and void. I knew it was one of those holy grail movies, I just could not remember the title. By the way Squawk, what does the 8888 mean? I know what squawk 7500, 7600, and 7700 mean, but a transponder only goes to 7777. Thanks bro.
Ooops. Wrong thread. I thought I was on a conspiracy thread.
The thought of Guam bobbing up and down in the ocean got me a little side tracked.
did you by chance get the flu shot this yr?
no
but i did register for selective service when i was 18
tic tic tic tic .................. tock
boats? it’s an island. boats can get to them. parachuters can get to them. helicopters an get to them. vtol aircraft. the new vtol marine deathtraps may get to them. ospreys.
Well its not a competition I hope.. you know the left their so competitive
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