Populations / diseases

From: Ian Gorlick <Ian.Gorlick.igorlick_at_nt.com>
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 11:03:59 -0400

In the discussion on death rates and related topics Peter Metcalfe asked:
>Where did syphillis and the Black death come from, I wonder?

I believe that the most popular theory now is that syphilis is a mutant form of a skin disease called "yaws". (I could be wrong about the particular disease there, my memory is fuzzy.) The theory that syphilis came from the americas is much less popular than it had been a few decades ago. There is more acceptance of the idea of an existing old world organism mutating into a more dangerous form. But the debate on syphilis is still on-going.

Black Death comes from siberian marmots and other small rodents. "Yersinia pestis" (spelling?) has been found in several species of rodent in the old world, that is why rats were such good vectors for the disease.

So both these plagues are likely to be old world diseases that took on a new and more virulent form shortly before making their spectacular debuts in human history.

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