The 5300-year-old Helicobacter pylori genome of the Iceman.

Maixner F, Krause-Kyora B, Turaev D, Herbig A, Hoopmann MR, Hallows JL, Kusebauch U, Vigl EE, Malfertheiner P, Megraud F, O'Sullivan N, Cipollini G, Coia V, Samadelli M, Engstrand L, Linz B, Moritz RL, Grimm R, Krause J, Nebel A, Moodley Y, Rattei T, Zink A

Science 351 (6269) 162-165 [2016-01-08; online 2016-01-09]

The stomach bacterium Helicobacter pylori is one of the most prevalent human pathogens. It has dispersed globally with its human host, resulting in a distinct phylogeographic pattern that can be used to reconstruct both recent and ancient human migrations. The extant European population of H. pylori is known to be a hybrid between Asian and African bacteria, but there exist different hypotheses about when and where the hybridization took place, reflecting the complex demographic history of Europeans. Here, we present a 5300-year-old H. pylori genome from a European Copper Age glacier mummy. The "Iceman" H. pylori is a nearly pure representative of the bacterial population of Asian origin that existed in Europe before hybridization, suggesting that the African population arrived in Europe within the past few thousand years.

Clinical Genomics Stockholm [Collaborative]

PubMed 26744403

DOI 10.1126/science.aad2545

Crossref 10.1126/science.aad2545

pii: 351/6269/162
pmc: PMC4775254
mid: NIHMS761290


Publications 9.5.0