Ötzi ice mummy was suffering from a stomach infection
January 7, 2016
Researchers have found aggressive intestinal bacteria in a 5,250-year-old mummy from the Tyrolian Alps. Today, that strain of Heliobacter pylori is endemic in parts of Asia.
Image: AP
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Almost 25 years have passed since the discovery of a glacier-mummy named "Ötzi." But today the corpse discovered in the Ötztal Alps in Tyrolia is divulging even more secrets to researchers.
Ötzi, says a team of scientists, was suffering from an infection due to an intestinal germ called Heliobacter pylori.
The identified strain of the bacteria can cause stomach ulcers or cancers.
Decrypting bacteria
Albert Zink, a paleopathology professor at Vienna University and co-author of the paper published today in the journal "Science," says the discovery of the germ by way of genome analysis involved a bit of good fortune.
"It was very improbable to find anything, since Ötzi's stomach lining was gone," he says.
Sebastian Suerbaum a medical doctor from the Institute for Microbiology at the Hannover Medical School who was not involved in the study, says that finding and decrypting the DNA of 5,250-year-old bacteria in this way is nothing short of a "technological breakthrough."
The researchers analyzed the DNA of all stomach contents inside the corpse.
This is how scientists think Ötzi must have looked at the time of his death.Image: dapd
Was Ötzi a migrant?
Previously, the oldest samples of the bacteria Heliobacter pylori had come from the 1980s. That's because it was only discovered in 1983. Humans have probably been carrying it around for about 100,000 years, though.
Today, it can be found in about half of the world's population.
The strain found in Ötzi is similar to varieties common in Central and Southern Asia, which is why the scientists involved have concluded that Ötzi was probably not a typical inhabitant of the Alps.
A well-known mummy
Mountain hikers found the corpse on September 19, 1991 on the 3208-meter (10,524-foot) high Tisenjoch glacier. Ötzi had lain there for more than 5,000 years, unusually well preserved in the snow and ice since his death.
Researchers previously established that he was likely killed by someone else, as an arrowhead was found in his shoulder. Shortly before his death, he had eaten the meat of a billy goat. He suffered from dental cavities, stress and lyme disease. His DNA has been decrypted, his blood type is known, and so too is his eye color. He was also lactose intolerant and even had a tattoo.
25 years of Ötzi discovery - the Iceman's secrets
The world's most famous glacier mummy was discovered 25 years ago. Since then, researchers in Italy's South Tyrol region have coaxed tons of secrets from Ötzi's 5,250-year-old body.
Today, Ötzi's final place of rest is the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology. But for a while it wasn't clear which country the mummy would go to. After it was discovered on September 19, 1991, both Austria and Italy laid claim to Ötzi. Official measurements finally revealed that he was found 92.56 meters (303.67 feet) behind the border - on Italy's side.
Image: AP
Unknown identity
At first, however, no one realized what a sensational discovery a couple from Bavaria had made on their hike. It was assumed the body belonged to a tourist who had recently frozen to death. One man claimed the dead John Doe was his uncle, others thought he was a victim of the biblical Deluge. When researchers discovered the truth, the archaeology world was beyond excited.
Image: dapd
Tattooed murder victim
Ötzi had 61 tattoos - no mermaids or kids' names, but lines and crosses. The Stone Age tattoo artist cut Ötzi's skin and filled the wounds with coal. Sounds painful? Not as bad as this: Ötzi was killed by an arrow shot through his shoulder from behind, as researchers at the archaeology museum in Bozen discovered.
Researchers could also find out what Ötzi ate shortly before his death by analyzing the contents of his stomach. His last meal was rich and fatty. It consisted, among other foods, of a Stone Age grain and goat meat.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/EURAC/Marco Samadelli
Modern ailments
Ötzi had many health issues that today's patients are still familiar with. He had cavities, Lyme disease, fleas and a smokers' lung from inhaling camp fire smoke. On top of that, Ötzi was lactose-intolerant and suffered from a helicobacter stomach infection as well as circulation problems. If the arrow hadn't killed him, he would have dropped dead sooner rather than later.
Image: picture alliance/dpa
Material mix
In 2015, the "Ötzi Walkers" hiked through western Germany promoting a Stone Age exhibition. For their clothes, they tried to stay as true as possible to Ötzi's outfits. He wore a brown bear fur hat, goat leather pants and a coat made of a goat-sheep skin mix.
Image: DW/C. Bleiker
Ötzi times two
The glacier mummy was a unique discovery. To give more people access to Ötzi, however, his body was copied in April 2016. Using a 3d-printer, researchers in Bozen created a second Ötzi made of resin, which was then painted with all the details of the original by US paleo-artist Gary Staab. The copy went to the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's DNA Learning Center in New York state.
