Multidetector CT of an antillean zemi idol.

Volumetric multidetector computed tomography (CT) was performed on an anthropomorphic cotton zemi idol from the Taino culture, which flourished in the Antilles between the 13th and 15th centuries ad. The zemi belongs to the permanent collection of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography at the University of Torino in Italy. According to some researchers of Taino culture, this is the only known cotton figure functioning as a reliquary that contains a partially preserved human skull. Postprocessing consisted of multiplanar and three-dimensional reformation of the axial CT scans. The built-in capacity of CT to measure the density of materials allowed detailed characterization of the structure of the zemi, which includes vegetable fibers, wood, stone, shells, and bone-in particular, the anterior part of a human skull. The results of this multidisciplinary study involving radiologists and physical anthropologists confirm the importance of multidetector CT in the noninvasive study of delicate museum objects and have awakened anthropologic interest in the form of multidisciplinary studies that are currently underway to better identify the social meaning of the object. These studies will undoubtedly provide new information about Taino culture.

Neural tube defect in a 4000-year-old Egyptian infant mummy: a case of meningocele from the museum of anthropology and ethnography of Turin (Italy).

This paper reports a paleopathological study of a severe neural tube defect in an ancient mummy, more specifically, a meningocele in an Egyptian infant from the XI dynasty (2100-1955B.C.). This is one of the most ancient cases of meningocele in mummified human remains described in paleopathological literature. Prehistoric and early historic examples of severe congenital defects of the vertebral column and neural tube are rare, because of the precarious preservation conditions of ancient human remains. Further, since the majority are only the skeletal remains, paleopathological and paleoepidemiological analysis based on the observation of bones is even more difficult. Hence, it is not easy to investigate this disease in the past in all its complexities and true diffusion. The case presented here is peculiar, since it concerns a mummy with almost all soft tissues preserved, thus allowing us to describe the defect in an infant. Only targeted, minimally invasive examinations were performed. An anthropological investigation with helical CT scan and histological analysis was used to diagnose the defect and identify post-mortem transformation processes. The analyses confirmed the diagnosis of meningocele in an approximately six-month-old infant.

Technical note: a rapid diagnostic test detects plague in ancient human remains: an example of the interaction between archeological and biological approaches (southeastern France, 16th-18th centuries).

A rapid diagnostic test (RDT) that detects Yersinia pestis F1 antigen was applied to 28 putative plague victims exhumed from seven burial sites in southeastern France dating to the 16th-18th centuries. Yersinia pestis F1 antigen was detected in 19 of the 28 (67.9%) samples. The 27 samples used as negative controls yielded negative results. Soil samples taken from archeological sites related to both positive and negative samples tested negative for F1 antigen. The detection threshold of the RDT for plague (0.5 ng/ml) is sufficient for a preliminary retrospective diagnosis of Y. pestis infection in human remains. The high specificity and sensitivity of the assay were confirmed. For two sites positive to F1 antigen (Lambesc and Marseille), Y. pestis-specific DNA (pla gene) had been identified previously by PCR-sequence based analyses. Specifically, the positive results for two samples, from the Lambesc cemetery and the Marseille pit burial, matched those previously reported using PCR. Independent analyses in Italy and France of different samples taken from the same burial sites (Draguignan and Martigues) led to the identification of both Y. pestis F1 antigen and Y. pestis pla and gplD genes. These data are clear evidence of the presence of Y. pestis in the ancient human remains examined in this study.

[A rapid diagnostic test for plague detects Yersinia pestis F1 antigen in ancient human remains]. / Détection de l'antigène F1 de Yersinia pestis dans les restes humains anciens à l'aide d'un test de diagnostic rapide.

A rapid diagnostic dipstick test (RDT) that detects Yersinia pestis F1 antigen has been recently applied on 18 putative plague victims exhumed from four archaeological burial sites in southeastern France dating back to the 16(th), 17(th) and 18(th) centuries. The Y. pestis antigen F1 was detected in 12 ancient samples out of 18 (67%). Negative controls confirmed their negativity (100%). Our results emphasize that the detection threshold of the RDT for plague (0.5 ng/ml) is sufficient for a first retrospective diagnosis of Y. pestis infection in ancient remains, and confirm the high specificity and sensitivity of the assay. Double-blind analyses performed by using two different techniques (RDT and 'suicide PCR') led us to the identification of the Y. pestis F1 antigen and the Y. pestis pla and gplD genes. These data provide clear evidence of the presence of Y. pestis in the examined specimens.

[Congenital spinal malformations: issues of anthropological ancient samples]. / Le malformazioni congenite della colonna vertebrale in soggetti infantili: problematiche interpretative su reperti archeoantropologici.

This work is part of a more extensive, still ongoing, research which aims to provide a morphological assessment and interpretation of congenital malformations on ancient bones. The study of the frequency and distribution of congenital malformations on juvenile osteological remains may provide interesting insight and critical observations in assessing the role of those factors that are responsible for child's mortality. In the present study we describe and discuss two cases of congenital spinal malformation refer to failure in the separation of vertebral arch elements between contiguous vertebrae. The skeletons belonging to two children who died in early childhood, between 0 and 6 years of age. The research was conducted on 132 juvenile individuals came from nine necropolises located in north an middle Italy, from ancient and late Roman times to late medieval times.