The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review
Tuberculosis (TB) is an ancient chronic infectious disease that remains a global health concern. In human remains, the most common and characteristic clinical signs are the skeletal modifications involving the spine, such as in Pott’s disease. Diagnosing TB in ancient human remains is challenging. T...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Pathogens and Immunity Case Western Reserve University Division of Infectious Diseases 10900 Euclid Ave. Mailstop 4984 Cleveland, OH 44106
2023
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93648 |
| _version_ | 1848765760992706560 |
|---|---|
| author | Papa, Veronica Galassi, Francesco Maria Varotto, Elena Gori, Andrea Vaccarezza, Mauro |
| author_facet | Papa, Veronica Galassi, Francesco Maria Varotto, Elena Gori, Andrea Vaccarezza, Mauro |
| author_sort | Papa, Veronica |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Tuberculosis (TB) is an ancient chronic infectious disease that remains a global health concern. In human remains, the most common and characteristic clinical signs are the skeletal modifications involving the spine, such as in Pott’s disease. Diagnosing TB in ancient human remains is challenging. Therefore, in this systematic review, the authors investigated the studies assessing molecular diagnosis of Pott’s disease in ancient human remains with the intention to survey the literature, map the evidence, and identify gaps and future perspectives on TB in paleopathology. Our systematic review offers a full contextualization of the history of Pott’s disease in ancient times. Our search strategy was performed between August 2022 and March 2023. The authors initially identified 340 records, and 74 studies were finally included and assessed for qualitative analysis. Due to non-specific clinical signs associated with TB, how best to diagnose tuberculosis in human remains still represents a central point. Nevertheless, ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis, lipid biomarkers, and spoligotyping might be extremely useful tools in the study of TB in human remains. Moreover, we propose the extraction and study of immune response genes involved in innate and adaptive immunity versus Mycobacterium spp. as an innovative and vastly overlooked approach in TB paleopathology. Complementary methodologies should be integrated to provide the best approach to the study of TB in human remains. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:40:23Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-93648 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:40:23Z |
| publishDate | 2023 |
| publisher | Pathogens and Immunity Case Western Reserve University Division of Infectious Diseases 10900 Euclid Ave. Mailstop 4984 Cleveland, OH 44106 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-936482023-11-15T05:46:36Z The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review Papa, Veronica Galassi, Francesco Maria Varotto, Elena Gori, Andrea Vaccarezza, Mauro Tuberculosis spondylodiscitis; ancient DNA; Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Complex (MTBC); human remains Tuberculosis (TB) is an ancient chronic infectious disease that remains a global health concern. In human remains, the most common and characteristic clinical signs are the skeletal modifications involving the spine, such as in Pott’s disease. Diagnosing TB in ancient human remains is challenging. Therefore, in this systematic review, the authors investigated the studies assessing molecular diagnosis of Pott’s disease in ancient human remains with the intention to survey the literature, map the evidence, and identify gaps and future perspectives on TB in paleopathology. Our systematic review offers a full contextualization of the history of Pott’s disease in ancient times. Our search strategy was performed between August 2022 and March 2023. The authors initially identified 340 records, and 74 studies were finally included and assessed for qualitative analysis. Due to non-specific clinical signs associated with TB, how best to diagnose tuberculosis in human remains still represents a central point. Nevertheless, ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis, lipid biomarkers, and spoligotyping might be extremely useful tools in the study of TB in human remains. Moreover, we propose the extraction and study of immune response genes involved in innate and adaptive immunity versus Mycobacterium spp. as an innovative and vastly overlooked approach in TB paleopathology. Complementary methodologies should be integrated to provide the best approach to the study of TB in human remains. 2023 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93648 10.20411/pai.v8i1.597 English http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Pathogens and Immunity Case Western Reserve University Division of Infectious Diseases 10900 Euclid Ave. Mailstop 4984 Cleveland, OH 44106 fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Tuberculosis spondylodiscitis; ancient DNA; Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Complex (MTBC); human remains Papa, Veronica Galassi, Francesco Maria Varotto, Elena Gori, Andrea Vaccarezza, Mauro The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review |
| title | The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review |
| title_full | The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review |
| title_fullStr | The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review |
| title_short | The Evolution of Diagnostic Techniques in the Paleopathology of Tuberculosis: A Scoping Review |
| title_sort | evolution of diagnostic techniques in the paleopathology of tuberculosis: a scoping review |
| topic | Tuberculosis spondylodiscitis; ancient DNA; Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Complex (MTBC); human remains |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93648 |