Ancient DNA solves 1,500-year-old mystery that caused ‘world’s first pandemic’
SMRTR summary
Researchers have solved the mystery of the Plague of Justinian (AD 541-750), history's first recorded pandemic. Scientists found genetic evidence of Yersinia pestis in teeth from mass graves near the outbreak's epicenter, confirming the cause of the plague that killed millions and altered Western civilization. Unlike COVID-19, plague pandemics emerged repeatedly from animal populations over millennia, evolving in multiple waves across regions. This serves as a reminder that Y. pestis still circulates globally today.
SMRTR provides this summary for quick context. The original article belongs to Interesting Engineering.
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