Humans are hosts to nearly 300 species of parasitic worms and over 70 species of protozoa, some derived from our primate ancestors and some acquired from the animals we have domesticated or come in contact with during our relatively short history on Earth. Our knowledge of parasitic infections extends into antiquity, and descriptions of parasites and parasitic infections are found in the earliest writings and have been confirmed by the finding of parasites in archaeological material. The systematic study of parasites began with the rejection of the theory of spontaneous generation and the promulgation of the germ theory. Thereafter, the history of human parasitology proceeded along two lines, the discovery of a parasite and its subsequent association with disease and the recognition of a disease and the subsequent discovery that it was caused by a parasite. This review is concerned with the major helminth and protozoan infections of humans: ascariasis, trichinosis, strongyloidiasis, dracunculiasis, lymphatic filariasis, loasis, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, cestodiasis, paragonimiasis, clonorchiasis, opisthorchiasis, amoebiasis, giardiasis, African trypanosomiasis, South American trypanosomiasis, leishmaniasis, malaria, toxoplasmosis, cryptosporidiosis, cyclosporiasis, and microsporidiosis.

https://cmr.asm.org/content/cmr/16/1/174.full.pdf

History of Human Parasitology

Almost all known human specific parasites have been found in ancient feces. A review of the paleoparasitological helminth and intestinal protozoa findings available in the literature is presented. We also report the new paleoparasitologic findings from the examination performed in samples collected in New and Old World archaeological sites. New finds of ancylostomid, Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, Enterobius vermicularis, Trichostrongylus spp., Diphyllobothrium latum, Hymenolepis nana and Acantocephalan eggs are reported. According to the findings, it is probable that A. lumbricoides was originally a human parasite. Human ancylostomids, A. lumbricoides and T. trichiura, found in the New World in pre-Columbian times, have not been introduced into the Americas by land via Beringia. These parasites could not supported the cold climate of the region. Nomadic prehistoric humans that have crossed the Bering Land Bridge from Asia to the Americas in the last glaciation, probably during generations, would have lost these parasites, which life cycles need warm temperatures in the soil to be transmitted from host to host. Alternative routes are discussed for human parasite introduction into the Americas.

https://www.arca.fiocruz.br/bitstream/icict/24719/2/HumanIntestinal.pdf

Human intestinal parasites in the past: new findings and a review

Parasitological studies of archaeological sites can be used to interpret past behavior and living conditions. During the 1980s problem-oriented research into prehistoric- and historical-period parasitism developed and resulted in the field of archaeoparasitology. Archaeoparasitology attempts to integrate parasite data into archaeological theory and interpretation. Within the last decade, four major archaeoparasitological laboratories emerged. They developed interpretive frameworks that apply parasitological data to a remarkable variety of prehistoric behaviors. Parasite remains can be used to reconstruct aspects of diet, health, and other behaviors such as transhumance and trade. Finally, analysis of the distribution of parasite remains can be used to interpret aspects of site-formation processes.

/pdf/parasitology-as-an-interpretive-tool-in-archaeology-1y22iqzoe7.pdf

Parasitology as an interpretive tool in archaeology

The study of prehistoric parasitism through analysis of coprolites, mummies, skeletons, and latrine soils is rapidly growing. Its development in North America is interdisciplinary and is derived from the fields of physical anthropology, parasitology, and archaeology. The various parasite finds from North America are reviewed. The data show that prehistoric peoples in North America suffered from a variety of parasitic diseases. The validity of the findings are then considered. Although most finds of parasites from prehistoric contexts result from human infections, some finds cannot be verified as such. However, in combination with data from South America, it is clear that prehistoric peoples in the Americas were host to a variety of human parasites, some of which were not previously thought to be present before historic times.

Archaeoparasitology in North America.

1
Human Evolution and Parasitic Infections

2
Helminths and Helminth Infections

3
Protozoa and Protozoal Infections

4
Summary and Conclusions



Keywords:

history of human parasitology;
human evolution and parasitic infections;
tropical diseases;
helminths and helminth infections;
Ascaris lumbricoides, large roundworm;
Trichinosis, known as trichinellosis and trichina infection;
hookworms and hookworm infection;
African trypanosomes and sleeping sickness

/pdf/history-of-human-parasitology-3gvclblg04.pdf

Coprolites were collected with the aid of a rectosigmoidoscope from a naturally mummified body of a child The body dates from 3490 ± 120 to 430 ± 70 BP and was found in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil The coprolites were rehydrated with a trisodium phosphate solution and concentrated by the spontaneous sedimentation method Microscopical examination showed eggs the same shape and size as those of Trichuris trichiura and of an ancylostomid

The finding of helminth eggs in a Brazilian mummy.

Introduction The study of parasites in human coprolites can throw light on such questions as the origin and antiquity of parasitic associations in different parts of the world, thus increasing our knowledge of the history of parasitic diseases, and can also be used as an aid to the interpretation of habits and migrations of prehistoric populations. Earlier work on these lines includes that of Przzr & SCHENONE (1954), WITENBERG (1961), PIKE (1968), FRY & HALL (1969), MOORE et al. (1969) and FONSECA (1970), among others. We here report the preliminary results of the parasitological examination of some coprolites collected by the staff of the Instituto de Arqueologia Brasileira, Rio de Janeiro.

A.J.G. de Araújo

Papers

The finding of helminth eggs in a Brazilian mummy.

The finding of eggs and larvae of parasitic helminths in archaeological material from Unai, Minas Gerais, Brazil.