The spatiotemporal distribution of human pathogens in ancient Eurasia

Martin Sikora (), Elisabetta Canteri, Antonio Fernandez-Guerra, Nikolay Oskolkov, Rasmus Ågren, Lena Hansson, Evan K. Irving-Pease, Barbara Mühlemann, Sofie Holtsmark Nielsen, Gabriele Scorrano, Morten E. Allentoft, Frederik Valeur Seersholm, Hannes Schroeder, Charleen Gaunitz, Jesper Stenderup, Lasse Vinner, Terry C. Jones, Björn Nystedt, Karl-Göran Sjögren, Julian Parkhill, Lars Fugger, Fernando Racimo, Kristian Kristiansen, Astrid K. N. Iversen () and Eske Willerslev ()
Additional contact information
Martin Sikora: University of Copenhagen
Elisabetta Canteri: University of Copenhagen
Antonio Fernandez-Guerra: University of Copenhagen
Nikolay Oskolkov: Lund University
Rasmus Ågren: Chalmers University of Technology
Lena Hansson: Definitive Healthcare
Evan K. Irving-Pease: University of Copenhagen
Barbara Mühlemann: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health
Sofie Holtsmark Nielsen: Statens Serum Institut
Gabriele Scorrano: University of Copenhagen
Morten E. Allentoft: University of Copenhagen
Frederik Valeur Seersholm: University of Copenhagen
Hannes Schroeder: University of Copenhagen
Charleen Gaunitz: University of Copenhagen
Jesper Stenderup: University of Copenhagen
Lasse Vinner: University of Copenhagen
Terry C. Jones: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health
Björn Nystedt: Uppsala University
Karl-Göran Sjögren: University of Gothenburg
Julian Parkhill: University of Cambridge
Lars Fugger: University of Oxford
Fernando Racimo: University of Copenhagen
Kristian Kristiansen: University of Copenhagen
Astrid K. N. Iversen: University of Copenhagen
Eske Willerslev: University of Copenhagen

Nature, 2025, vol. 643, issue 8073, 1011-1019

Abstract: Abstract Infectious diseases have had devastating effects on human populations throughout history, but important questions about their origins and past dynamics remain1. To create an archaeogenetic-based spatiotemporal map of human pathogens, we screened shotgun-sequencing data from 1,313 ancient humans covering 37,000 years of Eurasian history. We demonstrate the widespread presence of ancient bacterial, viral and parasite DNA, identifying 5,486 individual hits against 492 species from 136 genera. Among those hits, 3,384 involve known human pathogens2, many of which had not previously been identified in ancient human remains. Grouping the ancient microbial species according to their likely reservoir and type of transmission, we find that most groups are identified throughout the entire sampling period. Zoonotic pathogens are only detected from around 6,500 years ago, peaking roughly 5,000 years ago, coinciding with the widespread domestication of livestock3. Our findings provide direct evidence that this lifestyle change resulted in an increased infectious disease burden. They also indicate that the spread of these pathogens increased substantially during subsequent millennia, coinciding with the pastoralist migrations from the Eurasian Steppe4,5.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09192-8

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