Armstrong Stephanie, Cloutier Louise, Arredondo Carlos, Roksandic Mirjana, Matheson Carney
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada, R3T 2N2.
Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON, Canada, P7B 5E1.
Int J Paleopathol. 2013 Mar;3(1):19-29. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpp.2013.01.004. Epub 2013 Mar 9.
A holistic approach is necessary to investigate health in archeological populations. Molecular techniques, particularly multiplex PCR and SNaPshot minisequencing, can be combined with paleopathology and dietary analysis (stable isotope, starch, zooarchaeological analyses) to understand aspects of population health. This article demonstrates how spina bifida, a multi-factorial disease characterized by the midline failure to complete vertebral neural arch formation, can be investigated holistically. Based on skeletal evidence, this disease was prevalent in a pre-Columbian Cuban population from the archeological site of Canimar Abajo (3000-1250 BP). Molecular paleopathological techniques were employed to examine disease potential in this preliminary study, examining 18 individuals (including two individuals with evidence of mild spina bifida, and 16 without such evidence) for four single nucleotide polymorphisms and one insertion sequence associated with spina bifida. The combined effect of these polymorphisms, as well as dietary factors, determines the risk of the population for spina bifida, and these factors united to create the observed high disease prevalence. We demonstrate how molecular paleopathology, corroborated by dietary analyses, can be used within a paleoepidemiological framework to understand population health and disease.
采用整体方法来研究考古人群的健康状况很有必要。分子技术，尤其是多重聚合酶链反应（PCR）和SNaPshot微测序技术，可以与古病理学和饮食分析（稳定同位素、淀粉、动物考古学分析）相结合，以了解人群健康的各个方面。本文展示了如何对脊柱裂进行整体研究，脊柱裂是一种多因素疾病，其特征是中线部位未能完成脊椎神经弓的形成。基于骨骼证据，这种疾病在来自卡尼马尔阿巴霍考古遗址（公元前3000年至1250年）的前哥伦布时期古巴人群中很普遍。在这项初步研究中，采用分子古病理学技术来检测疾病可能性，对18个人（包括两个有轻度脊柱裂证据的个体和16个没有此类证据的个体）进行了与脊柱裂相关的四个单核苷酸多态性和一个插入序列的检测。这些多态性以及饮食因素的综合作用决定了该人群患脊柱裂的风险，而这些因素共同导致了观察到的高患病率。我们展示了如何在古流行病学框架内利用经饮食分析证实的分子古病理学来了解人群健康和疾病情况。
