Neolithic humans and dogs - transient reservoirs for Yersinia pestis

Abstract

Abstract Yersinia pestis (Y. pestis) has been infecting humans since the Late Neolithic (LN). Whether those early infections were isolated zoonoses or initiators of a prehistoric Eurasia-wide pandemic remains unclear. We report the results of a pathogen screening on 133 LN human remains from the necropolis at Warburg (Germany, 5300 − 4900 cal BP). We identify two new Y. pestis genomes from two individuals buried in different gallery graves. Our analyses show that the two Warburg genomes belong to distinct strains and reflect independent infection events. All LN Y. pestis genomes known today (n = 4) are basal in the phylogeny and represent separate lineages that probably originated in different animal hosts. The LN in northwestern Europe is characterized by an opening of the landscape. This change coincided with the use of more dogs, which might have increased the probability of Y. pestis transmission from rodents/birds to humans. To test this hypothesis, we screen publicly available ancient DNA datasets from canines. We confirm the presence of Y. pestis in an LN dog, supporting the scenario of zoonoses. We show that dogs acted as a transient reservoir and may therefore have been a possible Y. pestis vector in the Neolithic.