Maria Lopopolo

Lopopolo et al. 2026, statement on clinical significance of establishing M. lepromatosis' historical depth and geographic distribution: "From a biomedical standpoint, the most immediate implication of these findings is that M. lepromatosis is not a recent or geographically marginal agent, but a deeply diversified pathogen whose lineages reflect long-term persistence and dispersal across the Americas. This matters because deep genomic divergence, within M. lepromatosis and between M. lepromatosis and M. leprae, can plausibly translate into phenotypic differences relevant to clinical care, including variation in virulence, immune recognition, host range, and possibly response to treatment."

Overview study on Mycobacterium lepromatosis--the "new" species of leprosy-- by @marialopopolo.bsky.social Charlotte Avanzi, & @nrascovan.bsky.social: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/.... Important observations on the clinical implications of these historical findings. #OneHealth #histmed #aDNA

🧬 Two pathogens, one disease.
Leprosy cannot be understood as a single-pathogen disease.
Understanding this duality is critical for modern case detection, surveillance, and long-term control strategies.

A commentary with @nrascovan.bsky.social and @avanzich.bsky.social

#Leprosy #OneHealth #aDNA

The disease that struck twice: researchers reveal the forgotten... Leprosy affected indigenous peoples across the Americas long before the first Europeans arrived. New genetic research reveals that leprosy was present millennia before Christopher Columbus crossed...

Leprosy: the disease that struck the Americas twice.

sciencenews.dk/en/the-disea...

Matrix - Decentralised and secure communication You're invited to talk on Matrix. If you don't already have a client this link will help you pick one, and join the conversation. If you already have one, this link will help you join the conversation

📣📣We’ve launched a new Introduction Room on our community Element channel! Whether you’re a new or veteran member, introduce yourself, share your affiliation, and tell us about your research. Let’s connect and strengthen our community together!

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🗳️🗳️Dear SPAAM community, have you voted for the SPAAM8 2026 meeting location yet?

The poll is open until Nov 22! Check Element General Room to choose your preferred option (Leipzig, Copenhagen, Stockholm, or online). Your input matters—help shape our next annual meeting!

SPAAM Newsletter #7 Hello from the SPAAM Steering Committee!

Dear SPAAM Community members,
We are excited to share with you the latest SPAAM Newsletter!
Inside, you’ll find:
- updates on events and workshops
- funding/research opportunities
- latest publications
We hope you enjoy this edition!
www.spaam-community.org/assets/media...

I had a great time at the JIHS in Tokyo yesterday, presenting my work on pre-colonial M. lepromatosis-leprosy in the Americas followed by great discussions on leprosy. Thank you so much for hosting me!

I am still wrapping my head around the amazing week that I had first at our @spaam-community.bsky.social conference #SPAAM7 followed by 3 days of @isba11.bsky.social in Torino.
A conference that ended with a prestigious award. I am very grateful and honoured @isbarchaeology.bsky.social

An August addendum to this 🧵 on new studies documenting the presence of Mycobacterium lepromatosis in the pre-Contact Americas. @marialopopolo.bsky.social, lead author of the study in @science.org that came out in May, has won the @isba11.bsky.social Best Paper prize! bsky.app/profile/nras... Kudos!

@isba11.bsky.social
Super happy and proud for @marialopopolo.bsky.social and @avanzich.bsky.social who got the prize to the best paper at #ISBA11 in Turin.
Thanks to the jury for this honor!

Please help us improve #SPAAMtisch by filling out the feedback form below!

Also we are looking for new volunteers who are willing to help organising and inviting experts to give seminars. If you are interested please DM me or @bbonucci.bsky.social

We're excited to welcome Sterling Wright as the next invited speaker at #SPAAM7!🎉

@anthbyte.bsky.social

Listen to his talk on August 26th in Turin or online!🔥

Help us give a warm welcome to our newest #SPAAM7 invited speaker, Keri Burge! 🙌

Catch her talk on August 26th — live in Turin or online!

Blog · SPAAM Community Standards, Precautions, and Advances in Ancient Metagenomics

Hello SPAAM Community!
We are looking for volunteers to contribute to our SPAAM blog: www.spaam-community.org/category/blog/
If you are interested in authoring a blog post on the SPAAM website, do not hesitate to contact us at paam.community@gmail.com :)

Don't miss our #SPAAMTisch seminar given by John Tay on "Bayesian Phylogenetic Methods for Microbial Pathogens" here is the link to follow the talk **TODAY** at **4pm CET**

Join Zoom Meeting
ut-ee.zoom.us/j/94984441034?…

Meeting ID: 949 8444 1034
Passcode: 986313

We are live now!!! Follow our @spaam-community.bsky.social seminar series happening now! 👇

Pre-European contact leprosy in the Americas and its current persistence Leprosy, primarily caused by Mycobacterium leprae, is considered a disease introduced into the Americas during European colonization. However, the recent discovery of a second pathogen causing leprosy...

Nicolas Rascovan @nrascovan.bsky.social est biologiste, directeur de recherche à l'Institut Pasteur de l’équipe de Paléogénomique microbienne et dernier auteur de l'étude. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Thank you @spaam-community.bsky.social 🙏 a community full of amazing scientists but also dear friends who accompanied me during the journey of my PhD and from whom I've learnt a lot ✨️

Revelations on the History of Leprosy in the Americas Leprosy existed in America long before the arrival of Europeans: a new study reveals the history of a neglected pathogen.

🌎🧬 Leprosy was already endemic in the Americas for 1,000+ years BEFORE Europeans arrived. Scientists analyzed DNA from ~800 samples & found Mycobacterium lepromatosis infecting Indigenous populations centuries before colonization.
#Leprosy @marialopopolo.bsky.social @nrascovan.bsky.social

Leprosy in the Global Middle Ages: A Slow Pandemic In August 2024, Jordan became the first country to officially eliminate leprosy.1 Countries participating in the World Health Organization (WHO)2 have committed not simply to bringing percentages o…

And this blogpost for #WorldLeprosyDay2025 adds in the story for the "medieval" Pacific world: constantinusafricanus.com/2025/01/26/l.... With this latest work by @marialopopolo.bsky.social @nrascovan.bsky.social et al., we now have the outlines of a complete global picture. #histmed #MedievalSky

Leprosy was an American scourge long before Europeans arrived Scientists find DNA from an enigmatic bacterium in 1000-year-old skeletons

Big news in #GlobalHealthHistory today. A species of bacterium that causes leprosy, discovered in 2008 in modern patients, has been proven to have been present in the Americas well before European arrival. More details in 🧵 below: www.science.org/content/arti... #GlobalMiddleAges #histmed #aDNA 🧪

Un azote antiguo: la lepra circulaba en América antes de la llegada de los europeos En colaboración con comunidades indígenas, un equipo internacional de 40 científicos halló ADN de una de las dos bacterias responsables de esta enfermedad estigmatizante en los restos de individuos que vivieron en lo que hoy es Argentina y Canadá hace más de mil años.

Un diente reescribe la historia americana

Una gran investigación de @nrascovan.bsky.social @marialopopolo.bsky.social @avanzich.bsky.social publicada hoy en @science.org

Lo cuento en @agenciasinc.es

www.agenciasinc.es/Reportajes/U...

This research was done in respectful cooperation with Indigenous communities. We thank the Lax Kw’alaams & Metlakatla First Nations, and the local communties in Argentina, for their trust. Science must listen, partner, and follow the lead of communities who carry ancestral knowledge.

Huge thanks to the Microbial Paleogenomics Unit and my super supportive colleagues @institutpasteur.bsky.social and all 40+ co-authors who made this work possible. A massive cross-continental effort 🧬🌎

According to new molecular clock analyses, M. leprae and M. lepromatosis split between max only ~2 million years ago (not 14Mya as previously estimated). This puts their divergence in a more recent ecological and evolutionary context—much closer to today’s host and environmental conditions.

Molecular clock analyses fine tuned with the collaboration of @sebduchene.bsky.social traced all current M. lepromatosis to a tMRCA of ~9,400 years ago—long before Europeans arrived. Leprosy was already in the continent for a long time. ⏳

The biggest surprise: M. lepromatosis DNA was found in pre-colonial individuals from today’s territory of Canada and Argentina. The disease was widespread in the Late Holocene.

A modern strains with ~4,000 mutations may be relics of a deeper, ancient North American lineage. This strains suggest that M. lepromatosis may have even jumped to red squirrels in the UK ~200 years ago 🐿️ 🧬⚡

Most modern strains clustered in a single group: the “Present-Day Dominant Clade” (PDDC). It spreads clonally today in the USA, Mexico & Costa Rica.

A modern strain from Costa Rica was grown in mice footpads to get enough DNA. Using @nanoporetech.com long reads, we built the first complete genome in a single contig.