Analysis of 2,000-year-old skeletal remains from a child in Vietnam has revealed evidence of a congenital treponemal disease, similar to syphilis. The findings, published in the Journal of Biological and Clinical Anthropology, challenge long-held assumptions about the geographic origins and antiquity of such infections.
Researchers from the University of Otago and Vietnamese institutions examined remains from the Man Bac archaeological site in Ninh Bình province. Microscopic and radiographic analysis showed bone lesions characteristic of a treponemal infection transmitted from mother to child.
For decades, a dominant theory held that syphilis originated in the Americas and spread to Europe after 1492. This discovery in Southeast Asia suggests treponemal diseases were present in the Asia-Pacific region long before the Columbian Exchange, indicating a more complex global history.
The study does not confirm the specific pathogen but proves a syphilis-like disease existed in ancient Vietnam. This adds crucial evidence that congenital transmission, a hallmark of syphilis, is not a recent evolutionary development of the bacteria.
