A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland
Abstract Background In 1975, the mummified body of a female has been found in the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland. Molecular and genealogic analyses unveiled her identity as Anna Catharina Bischoff (ACB), a member of the upper class of post-reformed Basel, who died at the age of 68 years, in...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-02-01
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| Series: | BMC Biology |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-022-01509-7 |
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| author | Mohamed S. Sarhan Christina Wurst Alexandar Tzankov Andreas J. Bircher Holger Wittig Thomas Briellmann Marc Augsburger Gerhard Hotz Albert Zink Frank Maixner |
| author_facet | Mohamed S. Sarhan Christina Wurst Alexandar Tzankov Andreas J. Bircher Holger Wittig Thomas Briellmann Marc Augsburger Gerhard Hotz Albert Zink Frank Maixner |
| author_sort | Mohamed S. Sarhan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background In 1975, the mummified body of a female has been found in the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland. Molecular and genealogic analyses unveiled her identity as Anna Catharina Bischoff (ACB), a member of the upper class of post-reformed Basel, who died at the age of 68 years, in 1787. The reason behind her death is still a mystery, especially that toxicological analyses revealed high levels of mercury, a common treatment against infections at that time, in different body organs. The computed tomography (CT) and histological analysis showed bone lesions in the femurs, the rib cage, and the skull, which refers to a potential syphilis case. Results Although we could not detect any molecular signs of the syphilis-causing pathogen Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, we realized high prevalence of a nontuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) species in brain tissue sample. The genome analysis of this NTM displayed richness of virulence genes and toxins, and similarity to other infectious NTM, known to infect immunocompromised patients. In addition, it displayed potential resistance to mercury compounds, which might indicate a selective advantage against the applied treatment. This suggests that ACB might have suffered from an atypical mycobacteriosis during her life, which could explain the mummy’s bone lesion and high mercury concentrations. Conclusions The study of this mummy exemplifies the importance of employing differential diagnostic approaches in paleopathological analysis, by combining classical anthropological, radiological, histological, and toxicological observations with molecular analysis. It represents a proof-of-concept for the discovery of not-yet-described ancient pathogens in well-preserved specimens, using de novo metagenomic assembly. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T15:40:39Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-22f84288cdaf4229a2389ce37c2a102e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1741-7007 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T15:40:39Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-22f84288cdaf4229a2389ce37c2a102e2023-02-12T12:22:41ZengBMCBMC Biology1741-70072023-02-0121111610.1186/s12915-022-01509-7A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, SwitzerlandMohamed S. Sarhan0Christina Wurst1Alexandar Tzankov2Andreas J. Bircher3Holger Wittig4Thomas Briellmann5Marc Augsburger6Gerhard Hotz7Albert Zink8Frank Maixner9Eurac Research – Institute for Mummy StudiesEurac Research – Institute for Mummy StudiesInstitute of Medical Genetics and Pathology, University Hospital Basel, University of BaselDepartment of Allergology, University Hospital BaselDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of BaselCitizen Science Basel; formerly Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Chemistry and Toxicology, University of BaselUniversity Center of Legal MedicineNatural History Museum BaselEurac Research – Institute for Mummy StudiesEurac Research – Institute for Mummy StudiesAbstract Background In 1975, the mummified body of a female has been found in the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland. Molecular and genealogic analyses unveiled her identity as Anna Catharina Bischoff (ACB), a member of the upper class of post-reformed Basel, who died at the age of 68 years, in 1787. The reason behind her death is still a mystery, especially that toxicological analyses revealed high levels of mercury, a common treatment against infections at that time, in different body organs. The computed tomography (CT) and histological analysis showed bone lesions in the femurs, the rib cage, and the skull, which refers to a potential syphilis case. Results Although we could not detect any molecular signs of the syphilis-causing pathogen Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, we realized high prevalence of a nontuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) species in brain tissue sample. The genome analysis of this NTM displayed richness of virulence genes and toxins, and similarity to other infectious NTM, known to infect immunocompromised patients. In addition, it displayed potential resistance to mercury compounds, which might indicate a selective advantage against the applied treatment. This suggests that ACB might have suffered from an atypical mycobacteriosis during her life, which could explain the mummy’s bone lesion and high mercury concentrations. Conclusions The study of this mummy exemplifies the importance of employing differential diagnostic approaches in paleopathological analysis, by combining classical anthropological, radiological, histological, and toxicological observations with molecular analysis. It represents a proof-of-concept for the discovery of not-yet-described ancient pathogens in well-preserved specimens, using de novo metagenomic assembly.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-022-01509-7Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM)Ancient DNA (aDNA)BacteriophageSyphilisBrain infectionsMycobacteriosis |
| spellingShingle | Mohamed S. Sarhan Christina Wurst Alexandar Tzankov Andreas J. Bircher Holger Wittig Thomas Briellmann Marc Augsburger Gerhard Hotz Albert Zink Frank Maixner A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland BMC Biology Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) Ancient DNA (aDNA) Bacteriophage Syphilis Brain infections Mycobacteriosis |
| title | A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland |
| title_full | A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland |
| title_fullStr | A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland |
| title_full_unstemmed | A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland |
| title_short | A nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the Franciscan church in Basel, Switzerland |
| title_sort | nontuberculous mycobacterium could solve the mystery of the lady from the franciscan church in basel switzerland |
| topic | Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) Ancient DNA (aDNA) Bacteriophage Syphilis Brain infections Mycobacteriosis |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-022-01509-7 |
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