Emerging Pathogens

Many ancient diseases with a long history of afflicting mankind such as tuberculosis and malaria are now re-emerging. Others such as SARS, AIDS, and EBOLA seem totally new Most recently SARS has disrupted our social fabric, destroyed financial empires and brought chaos to international travel. Greenblatt and Spigelman bring together palaeopathologists, anthropologists, molecular biologists and modern infectious disease specialists to examine this phenomenon.New techniques allow us to detect ancient pathogen DNA and other biomarkers, in effect the chemical 'signatures' of pathogens. These tools could help us develop strategies to combat modern emerging diseases. This book focuses on ancient diseases in order to bridge the gap that has for so long separated today's infectious disease specialists and the paleopathologists who describe pathology in skeletal and mummified remains.