Overview
- Researchers reconstructed a complete Treponema pallidum genome from a 5,500-year-old tibia found in the Sabana de Bogotá, Colombia, extending the pathogen’s genomic record by more than 3,000 years.
- Phylogenetic analysis places the strain, dubbed TE1-3, on an early-diverging branch that split from other T. pallidum lineages about 13,700 years ago, preceding the emergence of modern subspecies around 6,000 years ago.
- The individual showed no skeletal lesions, and the pathogen was detected opportunistically through unusually deep shotgun sequencing of a non-diseased bone.
- The genome carries virulence-associated genes seen in contemporary strains, yet the study does not determine the disease presentation or mode of transmission.
- The work, published in Science, underscores complex treponemal histories in the Americas and details engagement with Colombian institutions and communities through permits and outreach.