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In medieval England, leprosy spread between red squirrels and people, genome evidence shows

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2024-05-05 00:30:03

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A lady plays with a pet squirrel, wearing a belled collar, in the early 14th century Luttrell Psalter. Credit: British Library Board Ms Add. MS 42130 f. 33r

Evidence from archaeological sites in the medieval English city of Winchester shows that English red squirrels once served as an important host for Mycobacterium leprae strains that caused leprosy in people, researchers report in the journal Current Biology.

"With our genetic analysis we were able to identify red squirrels as the first ancient animal host of leprosy," says senior author Verena Schuenemann of the University of Basel in Switzerland.