Hi, revived this old thread to share this recent article (published 23 jan 2023) , how genetics work never ceases to amaze me,
Source iScience :
"
Genomic evidence for adaptation to tuberculosis in the Andes before European contact
Highlights
Indigenous people of Ecuador may have adapted to tuberculosis over 3,000 years ago
Selection in cardiovascular and hypoxia pathways distinct from Peruvian populations
Population collapse at arrival of Europeans more severe than other areas of the Andes
Summary
Most studies focusing on human high-altitude adaptation in the Andean highlands have thus far been focused on Peruvian populations. We present high-coverage whole genomes from Indigenous people living in the Ecuadorian highlands and perform multi-method scans to detect positive natural selection.
We identified regions of the genome that show signals of strong selection to both cardiovascular and hypoxia pathways, which are distinct from those uncovered in Peruvian populations. However, the strongest signals of selection were related to regions of the genome that are involved in immune function related to tuberculosis. Given our estimated timing of this selection event, the Indigenous people of Ecuador may have adapted to Mycobacterium tuberculosis thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans. Furthermore, we detect a population collapse that coincides with the arrival of Europeans, which is more severe than other regions of the Andes, suggesting differing effects of contact across high-altitude populations.
Graphical abstract
Abstract of the
wiki page on this disease say :
"
History
Tuberculosis has existed since
antiquity.
[16] The oldest unambiguously detected
M. tuberculosis gives evidence of the disease in the remains of bison in Wyoming dated to around 17,000 years ago.
[159] However, whether tuberculosis originated in bovines, then transferred to humans, or whether both bovine and human tuberculosis diverged from a common ancestor, remains unclear.
[160] A comparison of the
genes of
M. tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in humans to MTBC in animals suggests humans did not acquire MTBC from animals during animal domestication, as researchers previously believed. Both strains of the tuberculosis bacteria share a common ancestor, which could have infected humans even before the
Neolithic Revolution.
[161] Skeletal remains show some prehistoric humans (4000
BC) had TB, and researchers have found tubercular decay in the spines of
Egyptian mummies dating from 3000 to 2400 BC.
[162] Genetic studies suggest the presence of TB in the Americas from about AD 100. "