Researchers excavate the progenitor of the Black Death to better combat deadly sickness.
Between 1346 and 1353, the Black Death was the worst epidemic in recorded history, killing an estimated 50 million people. Researchers claim to have discovered the ancestral roots of the Black Death in what is now Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia. This strain “gave birth to the bulk of [contemporary plague] strains now circulating throughout the globe.” Scientists have identified the plague strain from the Chüy Valley as the progenitor of many other plagues around the globe. From this primordial strain, plague branched into four main lineages in what scientists call a “Big Bang.” Before today, scientists did not know where or when the Big Bang strain originated.
Source: Ancient DNA offers clues as to where and when Black Death began : Goats and Soda : NPR
