Plague Origins Traced to 5,500 Years Ago

Researchers have identified the oldest known evidence of the plague, pushing the timeline of the disease’s emergence approximately 200 years earlier than previously established. The discovery confirms that outbreaks of the pathogen were occurring roughly 5,500 years ago, based on ancient genetic material recovered from human remains. This finding revises the early chronology of one of the most significant infectious diseases in human history.

The genetic evidence was extracted from dental pulp and bone samples collected at archaeological sites across Europe and Central Asia. Through advanced DNA sequencing, scientists isolated the distinct genetic markers of *Yersinia pestis*, the bacterium responsible for plague pandemics. The revised timeline indicates that the pathogen circulated among Bronze Age communities long before the well-documented medieval outbreaks, suggesting that early human societies likely experienced recurring epidemic waves that influenced settlement patterns and population dynamics.

By establishing a more accurate historical record of the plague, researchers can better trace how the bacterium evolved and dispersed across regions over millennia. The study highlights the value of paleogenomic techniques in reconstructing the origins of human pathogens and offers a clearer framework for examining how ancient disease outbreaks shaped demographic and cultural developments.