[Tetracycline-like fluorescence in buried human skeleton parts]

Microbiological Food Contamination and Status of Health at Herculaneum (1St Century Ad, Southern Italy)

The perfect preservation of objects, including food items, found in the houses of the Roman town of Herculaneum provides a unique perspective on the relationship between the state of health and nutrition in Roman times. The link between epizoonosis and the use of goat cheese has already been demonstrated. In this study, we show that other foods were also microbiologically contaminated, and that the Romans were continually exposed to alimentary sources of human illness. However, anthropological analysis of the skeletons of Herculaneum has shown a low prevalence of non-specific bone inflammation. We demonstrate that pomegranates and figs, consumed primarily in dried form, were invariably contaminated by Streptomyces spp, a bacterium that produces natural tetracycline. Histological analysis of the human bones from this site demonstrates a fluorescence typical of this substance. The tetracycline-labeled human bones show that the Roman inhabitants of Herculaneum were in the habit of eating foods contaminated by streptomicetes; this fact may explain the very low frequency of non-specific inflammatory bone pathologies in the living population. This interpretation fits with the therapeutic recommendations by several Roman physicians that preserved fruits be used to treat some inflammatory diseases.

Brief communication: Mass spectroscopic characterization of tetracycline in the skeletal remains of an ancient population from Sudanese Nubia 350-550 CE

Histological evidence of tetracycline use has been reported in an ancient X-Group population (350-550 CE) from Sudanese Nubia (Bassett et al., 1980). When bone samples were examined by fluorescent microscopy under UV light at 490 A yellow-green fluorophore deposition bands, similar to those produced by tetracycline, were observed, suggesting significant exposure of the population to the antibiotic. These reports were met skeptically with claims that the fluorescence was the result of postmortem taphonomic infiltration of bacteria and fungi. Herein, we report the acid extraction and mass spectroscopic characterization of the antibiotic tetracycline from these samples. The bone samples were demineralized in anhydrous hydrogen fluoride which dissolved the bone-complexed tetracycline, followed by isolation by solid phase extraction on reverse-phase media. Chemical characterization by high pressure liquid chromatography mass-spectroscopic procedures showed that the retention times and mass spectra of the bone extract were identical to tetracycline when treated similarly. These results indicate that a natural product tetracycline was detectable within the sampled bone and was converted to the acid-stable form, anhydrotetracycline, with a mass + H of 427.1 amu. Our findings show that the bone sampled is labeled by the antibiotic tetracycline, and that the NAX population ingested and were exposed to tetracycline-containing materials in their dietary regime.

Spectral and photobleaching analysis using confocal laser scanning microscopy: a comparison of modern and archaeological bone fluorescence

Since the 1950s, tetracycline (TC) administration has been used to create fluorescent 'labels' in bone for histomorphometric analysis. Similar fluorescence discovered in ancient human bone from Egypt and Sudan has been attributed to bacterially contaminated food-stores. It has been suggested that TC from this source could have affected the health of exposed ancient populations. However, no efficient means for the quantitative comparison of fluorescent labels within or between individuals or populations has been proposed. In the current study, confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) was shown to be an effective tool for fluorescence detection and spectral analysis in bone. Well-preserved archaeological bone recovered from the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt was compared to modern pig bone labeled with tetracycline and stained decalcified dog bone. TC fluorescence, whether archaeological or modern, was accurately identifiable by its spectrum. Photobleaching experiments suggest some difference exists in the photoresilience of archaeological and modern TC labels and that scans of one plane and area of focus can be made for more than an hour without complete loss of signal intensity. Results encourage the use of CLSM imaging and spectral analysis for further study on the nature of fluorescence in ancient and modern bone.

Fluorochrome labelling in Roman period skeletons from Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt

A histological aging study of femoral midshafts in a late Roman period sample from the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt, showed discrete fluorochrome labelling. The fluorochrome is yellow-green in colour and fluoresces at a wavelength of 525 nm. The labelling occurs at the mineralization fronts and is so distinct that several histomorphometric measurements were made. The percent labelled surface values ranged from 6.03% to 59.34%, and the mean distance between labels ranged from 13.57 to 20.63 microns. Teeth from several individuals were also labelled within the enamel matrix. Comparisons were made between the patterns of fluorescent labelling from this population and from patients treated with interval and continuous dosages of tetracycline. The results collectively indicate that the fluorochrome is most likely tetracycline that made its way into the bone (in vivo) via stored grain contaminated by Streptomycetes. The labelling was differential, much like that of the patient on interval doses of tetracycline, so it is argued that the tetracycline was ingested occasionally, probably on a seasonal basis. The lack of bone infection in the adults (n = 29) suggests that the tetracycline may have provided some antibiotic protection in this population.

[Iatrogenic histopathological findings. A systematic compilation]

A series of drugs and diagnostic agents are deposited (mostly in a metabolized form) in various human organs or cause characteristic histological pictures there. These iatrogenic alterations can frequently be recognized even after a short time and can be demonstrated for varying lengths of time. They may become relevant in various respects in terms of forensic medicine: (1) as an aid to identification in unknown cadavers or cadaver parts, (2) in establishing iatrogenic damage, (3) as an evaluation of findings in sudden and unexpected death from natural causes, and (4) in problems of insurance law with regard to morphological demonstration of chronic drug abuse, especially abuse of analgesics. In a systematic review broken down according to organs, a series of these drugs or diagnostic agents are presented with the morphological alterations they caused, the methods of histological demonstration and the duration of identifiability.