Genetic Sequencing of Medieval Leprosy Pathogen

(EPFL, June 14, 2013)

Using tiny amounts of material obtained from human remains buried in medieval graves, scientists have reconstructed genomes of five different strains of the leprosy pathogen, Mycobacterium leprae. The material contained less than 0.1% of bacterial DNA, requiring a new, extremely sensitive method for separating the two kinds of DNA and reconstituting the bacterial genome without using any contemporary strains as a basis. Scientists from EPFL participated in the research, whose results are published in the journal “Science”. The research makes important contributions to understanding leprosy, which was common in Medieval Europe but receded dramatically at the beginning of the 16th century. Just as important, the genome sequencing methods developed as part of the research can help to develop new, more precise approaches to understanding epidemics, both historic and modern.