Origin Of Syphilis Research Articles

Mystery of Origin of Syphilis

Syphilis is one of the oldest disease known to humans. Its history is as old as history of humans. Syphilis affects sexually active people, who are in productive age (15 – 65 years). The norm across all societies in the world is to get married after attaining sexual maturity for obtaining sexual satisfaction and procreation. Further, “Monogamy and Monoandry” is the recommended and widespread practice in the present world. If humans ignore the golden rule of monogamy and monoandry and indulge in indiscriminate and unprotected sex, they will suffer from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Syphilis is the commonest STD, has troubled humans since ages. The history of syphilis is mysterious, if we search the literature regarding the origin of syphilis, three important theories are mentioned. They are 1) Columbus theory, 2) Hudson theory, and 3) European universal theory. Keywords: Syphilis, STDs, Columbus theory, Hudson theory, European universal theory

A biography of infectious diseases: Hans Zinsser and his Rats, Lice and History

Hans Zinsser, a well-known bacteriologist and immunologist in the United States in the early 20th century, made great advancement in the research of pathogen of typhus and its vaccine, with the epidemic typhus renamed after him. His masterpiece, Rats, Lice and History, teased out the co-evolutionary process of infectious diseases and their related organisms, focusing on specific cases and the development history of typhus. In this sense, he revealed the tremendous impact of infectious diseases on human history. He examined microorganisms and humans equally rather than simply from a human point of view. He analysed the pathological features of infectious diseases and provided professional insights into historical events of infectious diseases, such as the origin of syphilis and the plague of Athens, based on sufficient citations and references. He also advocated interpreting the history of infectious diseases with a holistic insight of history. His book, Rats, Lice and History, has been reprinted many times after its first publication, driving the following scholars to put the history of infectious diseases into a grand background of human development, enhancing the comprehension of ecology and politics and promoting the development of research in the history of diseases including life sciences, history and other disciplines.

Sifilografía: A History of the Writerly Pox in the Eighteenth-Century Hispanic World by Juan Carlos González Espitia

Reviewed by: Sifilografía: A History of the Writerly Pox in the Eighteenth-Century Hispanic World by Juan Carlos González Espitia Cristian Berco Sifilografía: A History of the Writerly Pox in the Eighteenth-Century Hispanic World. By juan carlos gonzÁlez espitia. Charlottesville: Virginia University Press, 2019. 395 pp. In Sifilografía, Juan Carlos González Espitia engages in a wideranging cultural history of syphilis across the eighteenth-century Hispanic world. Not only does this work, therefore, tackle a relatively understudied period for this venereal disease but it also provides a nuanced reading of its multiple cultural reverberations in these societies. Drawing from medical, prescriptive, humorous, and even artistic sources, González Espitia succeeds in weaving a tapestry that reveals the underside of syphilitic discourses. What emerges from his careful analysis are various tensions across discursive and geographical spaces: whether tackling Enlightenment thought and both its challenge to Galenic frameworks and discomfort with prostitution as a threat to moral order, or whether unspooling the thread of debates around the origins of syphilis and their effect on emerging notions of American self-worth and identity, González Espitia adroitly manages to approach syphilis as both lived reality and cultural metaphor. In doing so, he reveals the centrality of this disease. The book is divided into short, tightly argued chapters which, though at first glance appear to move across traditional thematic boundaries in haphazard fashion, nevertheless underscore broader argumentative columns. After detailing his methodological and theoretical approach, González Espitia engages eighteenth-century medical and institutional culture. Chapters 2 to 6, therefore, focus on syphilis and its intersection with Enlightenment thought. From a somewhat conventional interpretation of the changing state of medical practice in the eighteenth century to a fascinating analysis of the power dynamics embedded in the usually overlooked preliminary sections of printed works, González Espitia leaves few stones unturned. Other chapters include reflections on Feijoo and contemporaries' slow [End Page 169] introduction of experimental thinking and methods, the role of the hospital and other institutions of control in Enlightenment policy and practice, and the uneven incorporation of emerging notions of germs, blood circulation and chemical treatments into medical understandings of syphilis. These sections on Enlightenment ideologies and how they intersect with medical, scientific, and institutional practices around syphilis provide a solid basis that then allow González Espitia to broaden his scope. After all, while syphilis was a reality threaded across patients' bodies and institutional architecture, it also served as a useful metaphor to explore the burning issues of the time. The trinity of chapters 7 through 9, thus, adroitly focus on that perennial problem around syphilis—the question of its name and origin. Tracking the complex tensions around the propensity to assign syphilis a gallic name as well as ongoing debates about the potential American origin of the disease, González Espitia makes an effective case for the emergence of an American sense of identity and self worth in relation to these questions. Indeed, syphilis became a perfect vehicle for these identitary concerns to manifest well before independence movements in the Americas. The following chapters (10 through 16) will continue this exploration of syphilis as metaphor and somatic reality, further illuminating cultural threads around the disease. In what amounts to a series of well argued case studies, González Espitia further nuances some of the main themes of his research: syphilis as both a visible and emblematic site of moralistic control and as subterranean locus for desires, tensions, and identities that ultimately destabilize the Enlightenment project. Among other topics, he therefore explores the multifaceted role of humor: not only do these works provide moral critiques of the ills of the day but they serve to make sense of the reality of venereal disease, including complex tensions around prostitutes who were, at once, seen as necessary to contain otherwise unstructured male desire while also being condemned as vectors of disease. Of particular interest to readers might be especially innovative readings of works as diverse as Lizardi's The Mangy Parrot and Moratín's Arte de las putas to Goya's series of Caprichos or even the bureaucratic reports of Francisco Cabarrus. As erudite and innovative as...

Syphilis: then and now.

Getting to know the history of syphilis should begin with an attempt to establish the original source of its spread throughout the world. The dispute about the origin of syphilis, a sexually transmitted infection caused by Treponema pallidum (subspecies pallidum), had not been resolved even as late as in the twenty-first century, and to this day the supporters and opponents of the thesis that syphilis was brought to Europe by Christopher Columbus’ sailors have been fighting without solid and sustainable foundations. The French named syphilis “the Neapolitan disease”, while the Italians called it “the French disease”.

Archaeogenetics: What Can Ancient Genomes Tell Us about the Origin of Syphilis?

The origin of syphilis has been hotly debated for decades. Ancient pathogen DNA may provide new evidence to redefine our understanding of this mystery, but is the mystery itself flawed in its assumptions?

First Paleogenetic Evidence of Probable Syphilis and Treponematoses Cases in the Brazilian Colonial Period.

Despite interest in the origins of syphilis, paleopathological analysis has not provided answers, and paleogenetic diagnosis remains a challenge. Even venereal syphilis has low infectivity which means there are few circulating bacteria for most of the individual's life. Human remains recovered from the Nossa Senhora do Carmo Church (17th to 19th centuries) and the Praça XV Cemetery (18th to 19th centuries), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, were subjected to Treponema paleogenetic analysis. Historical data point to endemic treponemal infections in the city, including venereal syphilis. Based on the physiopathology of Treponema pallidum infection, 25 samples, mostly from skull remains of young adults, with no visible paleopathological evidence of treponematoses, were analyzed. PCR with three molecular targets, tpp47, polA, and tpp15, were applied. Ancient DNA tpp15 sequences were recovered from two young adults from each archaeological site and revealed the polymorphism that characterizes T. p. subsp. pallidum in a female up to 18 years old, suggesting a probable case of syphilis infection. The results indicated that the epidemiological context and the physiopathology of the disease should be considered in syphilis paleogenetic detection. The findings of Treponema sp. aDNA are consistent with historical documents that describe venereal syphilis and yaws as endemic diseases in Rio de Janeiro. Data on the epidemiological characteristics of the disease and its pathophysiology offer new perspectives in paleopathology.

Treponemal disease in the Old World? Integrated palaeopathological assessment of a 9th–11th century skeleton from north-central Spain

The hypothesis of an American origin of acquired (venereal) syphilis and other infectious diseases carried by Columbus’s crew has been considered for a long time as the most plausible one, and has been supported recently by considerable anthropological and molecular evidence. According to this line of thought, it can be argued that Spain would have been the gateway of acquired syphilis, which quickly expanded after the return of Columbus in the late 15th century. However, the hypothesis that syphilis previously existed in Europe but went unrecognized has also been considered by many authors. The present work reports one Pre-Columbian putative case of venereal syphilis found in a Spanish necropolis and radiocarbon dated to the 9th–11th century. The complexities of carrying out accurate diagnoses in remains from archaeological timeframes are addressed by the combined use of palaeopathological, medical, and histological techniques. The results, which point toward third-stage acquired syphilis, spark discussion about the need to revisit or complement the theories and hypothesis on the origin of syphilis in the light of a growing body of cases from European historical populations.

Juan Marin Rojas M.D., First Professor of History of Medicine at Universidad de Chile and his "Essay about the origin of syphilis"

Dr. Juan Marín Rojas, M.D., was the first Professor of History of Medicine at Universidad de Chile, navy doctor, diplomat, writer and literary critic. Member of the International Society of History of Medicine, and Correspondent Member for Chile of the "Office de Documentation de Médecine et Pharmacie Militaire", Liege, Belgium, from which his "Essay about the origin of syphilis" is transcribed with interesting historical facts and little known arguments that affirm the non-american origin of syphilis, but "aspire to leave a doubt, given not a contrary conviction".

Syphilis in the United States

Syphilis gained notoriety in the 1500s, when it became widespread throughout Europe. While the origins of syphilis are not certain, recent data have shown that it may have originated in the Americas from a close relative that causes Yaws (Treponema pallidum pertenue).1 For the past 500years, the disease has shown its various faces all over the world. The 19th century saw an entire medical subspecialty—syphilology (sometimes known as syphilography)—devoted to the study of the great disease, then known as “the great imitator.” Syphilis has an entire textbook of presentations and can mimic many other infections and immune-mediated processes. At the beginning of the 20th century, the many faces of the disease led to Sir William Osler’s well-known aphorism, “The physician who knows syphilis knows medicine."2When penicillin was discovered, and used to treat syphilis in 1943, some thought that syphilis would go by the wayside, but syphilis continued what it has been doing for so many years . inconspicuously infecting humans. The United States has seen the incidence of syphilis increase numerous times throughout the past 70years. Every decrease in the incidence of syphilis is followed shortly by an increase. A marked shift in the epidemiology occurred from 1990 to 2000. In the 1990s, syphilis primarily occurred in heterosexual minority groups. In the new millennium, a majority of cases of syphilis are now transmitted among men who have sex with men (MSM).3 This contribution discusses the incidence of syphilis in the United States and the reasons these trends continue.

On the Origin of Syphilis and Contemporary Views of Disease Dynamics

Despite effective treatment availability for nearly a century, syphilis remains a global public health problem with significant social and economic impact. Over 500 years after the first reports of this sexually transmitted infection, questions remain regarding its origins, relationship to other infectious agents and effective control measures. Studies addressing origins of syphilis and non-syphilitic treponemes provide content to questions of evolution and emergence, however, many questions remain. Disease dynamics of syphilis are embedded in social behaviors and contribute heavily to propagation of this ancient disease. Discussions on the origins of syphilis and disease dynamics are presented.

History of Syphilis: Between Poetry and Medicine

The origin of syphilis is a matter of debate and two "historical" hypotheses explain its emergence. We present here a review about syphilis history. A review of literature about syphilis history using the following keywords: "syphilis," "history," and "treponema." The Columbian opinion is that syphilis came from the New World (America) with the crews of Christopher Columbus's fleet. As Naples fell before the invading army of Charles the VIII in 1495, a plague broke out among the French leader's troops. When the army disbanded shortly after the campaign, the troops, composed largely of mercenaries, returned to their homes and disseminated the disease across Europe. Indeed, there were reports that indigenous peoples of the New World suffered from a similar condition. Regardless of the Columbian and the Pre-Columbian theories, syphilis remains an international disease, growing nowadays with HIV infection. Despite history, politics, paleopathology and molecular approaches, the origin of the disease remains an enigma.

The Science Behind Pre‐Columbian Evidence of Syphilis in Europe: Research by Documentary

This article discusses the presentation of scientific findings by documentary, without the process of peer review. We use, as an example, PBS's "The Syphilis Enigma," in which researchers presented novel evidence concerning the origin of syphilis that had never been reviewed by other scientists. These "findings" then entered the world of peer-reviewed literature through citations of the documentary itself or material associated with it. Here, we demonstrate that the case for pre-Columbian syphilis in Europe that was made in the documentary does not withstand scientific scrutiny. We also situate this example from paleopathology within a larger trend of "science by documentary" or "science by press conference," in which researchers seek to bypass the peer review process by presenting unvetted findings directly to the public.

What skeletons tell us. The story of human paleopathology

Human skeletal paleopathology provides important insight regarding the antiquity of some diseases and their distribution in past human groups. The history of human skeletal paleopathology extends back more than 150years. Rudolf Virchow published reports on the subject, and research on paleopathology has provided critical data on important topics such as the origin of syphilis. With the development of powerful new research tools, human paleopathology will continue to be a source of data on the development of disease and its effect on human biological and cultural development.

Origins of syphilis and management in the immunocompetent patient: Facts and controversies

Despite the continued efficacy of penicillin since the 1940s, many aspects of the natural history, diagnosis, and management of syphilis remain controversial. A key factor among the numerous factors explaining the persistence of significant areas of controversies is the absence of a gold standard direct method for distinguishing between the different stages of syphilis and appraising treatment response. This contribution presents an overview of some of the most debated aspects of the origins, diagnosis, and management of syphilis in immunocompetent patients. The two main current hypotheses on the origins of Treponema pallidum are the “Columbian” and the “Pre-Columbian” hypotheses. Strong evidence supports that Columbus' crew brought T pallidum to Europe at the time of discovery of the New World. Because T pallidum culture and inoculation to animals are not readily available methods, the gold standard method for the diagnosis of syphilis is the direct identification of T pallidum by dark field microscopy or direct fluorescent antibody tests. These methods, however, are inapplicable in many patients, and thus the diagnosis of syphilis is usually based on the clinical and serologic picture. Serologic tests should only be considered as surrogate markers of the disease and do not provide definite distinction between syphilis stages. The optimal combination of serologic tests is still undefined. Other areas of controversy include the identification of patients who would benefit from a lumbar puncture, the diagnostic criteria of neurosyphilis, and the most relevant markers of treatment response.

Syphilis at the Crossroad of Phylogenetics and Paleopathology

The origin of syphilis is still controversial. Different research avenues explore its fascinating history. Here we employed a new integrative approach, where paleopathology and molecular analyses are combined. As an exercise to test the validity of this approach we examined different hypotheses on the origin of syphilis and other human diseases caused by treponemes (treponematoses). Initially, we constructed a worldwide map containing all accessible reports on palaeopathological evidences of treponematoses before Columbus's return to Europe. Then, we selected the oldest ones to calibrate the time of the most recent common ancestor of Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, T. pallidum subsp. endemicum and T. pallidum subsp. pertenue in phylogenetic analyses with 21 genetic regions of different T. pallidum strains previously reported. Finally, we estimated the treponemes' evolutionary rate to test three scenarios: A) if treponematoses accompanied human evolution since Homo erectus; B) if venereal syphilis arose very recently from less virulent strains caught in the New World about 500 years ago, and C) if it emerged in the Americas between 16,500 and 5,000 years ago. Two of the resulting evolutionary rates were unlikely and do not explain the existent osseous evidence. Thus, treponematoses, as we know them today, did not emerge with H. erectus, nor did venereal syphilis appear only five centuries ago. However, considering 16,500 years before present (yBP) as the time of the first colonization of the Americas, and approximately 5,000 yBP as the oldest probable evidence of venereal syphilis in the world, we could not entirely reject hypothesis C. We confirm that syphilis seems to have emerged in this time span, since the resulting evolutionary rate is compatible with those observed in other bacteria. In contrast, if the claims of precolumbian venereal syphilis outside the Americas are taken into account, the place of origin remains unsolved. Finally, the endeavor of joining paleopathology and phylogenetics proved to be a fruitful and promising approach for the study of infectious diseases.

A pre-Columbian case of congenital syphilis from Anatolia (Nicaea, 13th century AD)

In this study, the skeleton of an approximately 15-year-old child, dating back to the Late Byzantine period (13th century AD) is examined with the aim of determining where this specimen fits in the continuing arguments on the origins of syphilis. It was unearthed during an excavation at an amphitheatre in Nicaea dating to the Roman period. The Nicaea specimen displays common symptoms found in the majority of people with congenital syphilis such as Hutchinson's incisor, mulberry molar, darkened enamel, radial scar on frontal bone, sabre tibia, syphilitic dactylitis, and gummatous and non-gummatous osteomyelitis on almost every post-cranial bone. Because of the sub-periosteal new bone formation, the medullary spaces in some long bones are narrowed or completely obliterated. These lesions, which were observed via macroscopic and radiological examination, reflect the late stages of congenital syphilis. The specimen, when examined together with increasing numbers of other finds from the Old World, contributes to the argument that venereal syphilis did exist in the Old World before 1493, and brings forward the need to revise the Columbian hypothesis, which maintains that syphilis is a new disease carried to the Old World from the New World by Columbus' crew. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Venereal Disease and the Lewis and Clark Expedition by Thomas Lowry

of French and Indian ancestry (p. 10-11). She quotes with approval a remark that "the stan dard label for the Lewis and Clark expedition might withmore fairnessbe expanded to 'Lewis and Clark and Verendrye and Drouillard and Charbonneau'" (p. 24ns). This is a freshand worthwhile approach to earlywestern history,and Colby seems tohave gathered everythingwritten on her particular subject. She traces theCharbonneaus through generations inQuebec. She quotes dozens of passages about Sacagawea, Toussaint Char bonneau, and their son. She tries to challenge prejudices by looking at thesefigures"in terms of theirown cultures and the realities of their own times" (p. 11). She thus creates themost extensive, amply illustratedbiography anyone is likelytowrite. Yet, a close readerwill find thisbook frus tratingwhen it relies on secondary sources ratherthanprimarydocuments.Many passages from Lewis and Clark, for example, are taken from the Elliott Coues edition? a rewritten and much-edited narrative of the expedition ? instead of the painstaking Gary Moulton edition of the Journals or theDonald Jackson edition of lettersand documents. Colby's foot notesmay point to mere opinions from Francis Parkman's The Oregon Trail (pp. 42, 76, 113, 117,119,137,139), toworks thatquote or report old tales and reminiscences, or to an excellent source that contains nothing whatever about thematter at hand (Jackson at p. 40/745).The genealogies seem to relyon aDictionnaire des Manages Charbonneau, which may ormay not be a scrupulous familyhistory; itsauthority is nowhere described or discussed. Colby also makes sweeping generalizations that amount to mind-reading or stereotyping. Sacagawea, she states, "was a confident, ac complished young woman, ready for whatever fate sentherway," and she continually inspired respect, admiration, loyalty,and devotion (p. 37,47). Jean-Baptiste lived ina palace and then survived on roughwestern trails.Therefore, he had the temperament ofboth a bon vivant and a wilderness ascetic. "Fine cuisine... must have appealed to thedebonair Jean-Baptiste, whose educated palate, pampered in the courts of Europe for sixyears, suffered mightily at times on the range"; yet, at the same time he was perpetually "seduced by thecharm and freedom of an unfettered lifeon the plains and in the mountains," and "the Indian in him rejected avarice, and hiswhole lifeillustratedthathewas contentwith the simple lifeof a lone bachelor" (p. 141,117,163). ALBERTFURTWANGLER Salem, Oregon VENEREAL DISEASEAND THE LEWIS AND CLARKEXPEDITION byThomas Lowry University ofNebraska Press, Lincoln, 2004. Photographs, maps, tables, index. 117pages. $21.95 cloth.. DR. THOMAS LOWRY, a retired psychiatrist fromthe University ofCalifornia, San Francisco, haswritten a book that,although slim, ispacked with information and delightful to read. The various chapters deal with the current state of knowledge of venereal disease; the origin of syphilis, which is stillamatter for livelydiscus sion;what Lewis and Clark were likelytoknow about venereal disease and how theyprepared for itby buying the appropriate medicines; Indian medicine; accounts from the journals; and a final chapter on possible indications that themen of the Corps suffered from the late manifestations of syphilis after the expedition ended. In the early 1800s, the distinction between syphilis and gonorrhea was vague, but the treatment for both was the same ? mercury. Lewis notes in many places inhis journals that men were being treated for"thevenereals," but onlymentions threemen by name. He writes about the incidence of infectionamong Indian women, but does not suggestthatanyofhis own men came on the expedition already infected. Considering the high incidence of venereal Reviews 151 disease in all armies at that time, itdoes not seem unreasonable to think that some of the men were already infected. Lowry discusses thepossible originsof syphi lis insome detail, although he does notmention thesuggestivefindingfromthenorth ofEngland that syphilis inother parts of Europe preceded its appearance in Italy in 1494-1495by several hundred years. (SeeClaude Qu?tel, trans.Judith Bradock and Brian Pine, TheHistory ofSyphi lis, JohnsHopkins University Press, 1992 and http:///www.pbs.org/wnet/secrets/case_syphi lis/intex.htmlfor more on thisdebate.) One of the most intriguingdiscussions con cerns the possibility that Lewis was suffering from tertiarysyphiliswhen he died. Reimert Ravenholt, writing in 1994,even suggested that he could pinpoint the night on which Lewis acquired the disease ? August 13, 1805.This would imply that he developed tertiarycere bral syphilis in fouryears. This is theoretically possible, but unlikely, as thefinal...

On the Trail of the Twisted Treponeme: Searching for the Origins of Syphilis

On the Trail of the Twisted Treponeme: Searching for the Origins of Syphilis

Histological identification of syphilis in pre‐Columbian England

Microscopic analyses served to complement the macroscopic identification of venereal syphilis in two of four pre-Columbian skeletons from the site Hull Magistrates Court in England. Diagnosis was based on parameters presented by Schultz ([1994] Origin of Syphilis in Europe, Toulon: Centre Archaeologique du Var, p. 63-67; [2001] Yrbk. Phys. Anthropol. 44:106-147; [2003] Identification of Pathological Conditions in Human Remains, New York: Academic Press, p. 73-109), which characterized venereal syphilis at a histological level. Observation of the microarchitecture of these samples allowed a more comprehensive approach to identification of the disease (processes). In most samples, Polsters and Grenzstreifen (or remnants of such structures) could be identified, suggesting the presence of a chronic, inflammatory disease such as venereal syphilis. Sinous lacunae were also observed in all histological samples, pointing to lytic activity (osteitis). The combination of both proliferative and destructive processes is pathognomonic for syphilis, and histological analyses provided a more accurate diagnosis of this infectious disease in these four individuals. As a result, the histological evidence suggests that venereal syphilis was present in England prior to 1492. This secondary form of evidence supports the macroscopic identification of the disease, and shows the power of a multimethodological approach to paleopathological diagnoses.

“WITHOUT THE CAMP”: LEPROSY AND NINETEENTH-CENTURY WRITING

FOUCAULT WAS PROBABLY RIGHT WHEN he argued in the first chapter of Madness and Civilization that the asylum replaced the lazar house at the end of the Middle Ages, but he exaggerated in claiming that leprosy had disappeared from the western world. The decline of leprosy in early modern Europe did not mean that fear of it vanished or that Europe lost all contact with the disease. From the sixteenth century it became involved in the debate about the origin of syphilis, which at first was widely believed to be a new form of leprosy. A later, converse theory claimed that leprosy was a common terminal stage of syphilis, particularly in hot climates (Leprosy in India 353). This was given circulation and respectability at the turn of the nineteenth century by William Jones when he wrote that “The Persian, or venereal, fire generally ends in this malady” (qtd. in Crook and Guiton 91). The Collected Works of this distinguished Orientalist were published in 1799 and widely discussed. Britain’s steady colonial expansion in the late eighteenth century had brought renewed contact with leprosy and the consequent fear of its reintroduction into Europe. Although the disease had remained available to writers as a figure for horror throughout the early modern period, it was to take on renewed force in the century or so following the publication of Lyrical Ballads (1798).