Prehistoric / en 老司机直播 researchers find that ancient Iceman's infection helps Lyme disease bone loss discovery /news/u-t-researchers-find-ancient-iceman-s-infection-helps-lyme-disease-bone-loss-discovery <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">老司机直播 researchers find that ancient Iceman's infection helps Lyme disease bone loss discovery</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-01-05-caven-man-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=jsez_5Ln 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-01-05-caven-man-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=IfqXOWpK 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-01-05-caven-man-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=3kaFaTvU 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-01-05-caven-man-lead.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=jsez_5Ln" alt="Photo of Otzi"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>ullahnor</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-01-05T10:30:00-05:00" title="Thursday, January 5, 2017 - 10:30" class="datetime">Thu, 01/05/2017 - 10:30</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Reconstruction of 脰tzi the Iceman in the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Italy (photo courtesy of South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology/Kennis/A.Ochsenreiter)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/erin-vollick" hreflang="en">Erin Vollick</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Erin Vollick</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/breaking-research" hreflang="en">Breaking Research</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-dentistry" hreflang="en">Faculty of Dentistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/prehistoric" hreflang="en">Prehistoric</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/iceman" hreflang="en">Iceman</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lyme-disease" hreflang="en">Lyme Disease</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Named after the 脰tzal Alps where he was discovered, 脰tzi, the oldest known European mummy&nbsp;was just 45 when he died around 3,300 BCE.</p> <p>Mitochondrial DNA analysis has shown that the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease resided deep in 脰tzi鈥檚 bones. Though he didn鈥檛 die from complications of the disease, work from a team of scientists at the University of Toronto鈥檚 Faculty of Dentistry now suggests that the 5,000-year-old man might have suffered from bone loss as a result of his infection.</p> <p>The ancient man鈥檚 infection was enough of a clue for a team of scientists from U&nbsp;of T to set out to hunt for the mysterious <em>Borrelia burgdorferi</em> bacteria that cause Lyme disease in modern subjects. While scientists have long established a link between advanced Lyme disease and the development of osteoarthritis, until now no one has systematically studied the effects of this disease on bones.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淏one pain has been reported since Lyme disease has been studied, but it鈥檚 not something that has been investigated,鈥 said&nbsp;<strong>Tara Moriarty</strong>, assistant professor at the Faculty of Dentistry and senior author of the study, which was published last month in the journal<a href="http://iai.asm.org/content/early/2016/12/08/IAI.00781-16.abstract"><em> Infection and Immunity</em></a>.</p> <p>The bacteria were not only detectable in the bones of mice, they were seen to cause significant bone loss in the longer bones, mere weeks after infection.&nbsp;</p> <p>In fact, the bone loss developed at a rapid rate, taking just four weeks to advance to osteopenia, a forerunner to the more severe form of bone loss disease, osteoporosis. The study found that the amount of bone loss directly correlated to the bacterial load found in the bones. The more bacteria present, the greater the rate of bone loss.</p> <p>The findings suggest&nbsp;that monitoring bone loss in human Lyme disease patients may be warranted, especially because bone loss is a significant risk factor for fractures later in life. At the same time, the study raises new questions about the mysterious disease and its debilitating effects.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淥ne of our main focuses right now is on the mechanism that induces the bone loss,鈥 said <strong>Tian Cornelia Tang</strong>, first author of the study who recently graduated with a master's from&nbsp;the Faculty of Dentistry.</p> <p>Cellular studies are currently underway to determine just how the bacteria interact with the bone building cells of the body, osteoblasts, with the hope of finding new drug targets to combat not just the bacteria, but the newly discovered associated bone loss.</p> <p>鈥淲e need to know how long the osteopenia lasts after bacterial infection, and whether it progresses to osteoporosis,鈥 added Moriarty.&nbsp;</p> <p>Although the fate of the ancient 脰tzi may be fixed forever in time, his infection could soon help&nbsp;thousands of people infected each year avoid&nbsp;the devastating complications of Lyme disease.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 05 Jan 2017 15:30:00 +0000 ullahnor 103015 at