The pre-Columbian Huecoid and Saladoid cultures were agricultural ethnic groups that supplemented their diets by fishing, hunting and scavenging. Archaeological deposits associated to these cultures contained a variety of faunal osseous remains that hinted at the cultures’ diets. The present study identified zoonotic parasites that may have infected these two cultures as a result of their diets. We used metagenomic sequencing and microscopy data from 540–1,400 year old coprolites as well as the zooarchaeological data to recreate the possible interactions between zoonotic parasites and their hosts. Microscopy revealed Diphyllobothrium spp. and Dipylidium caninum eggs along with unidentified cestode and trematode eggs. DNA sequencing together with functional prediction and phylogenetic inference identified reads of Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia intestinalis and Schistosoma spp. The complimentary nature of the molecular, microscopy and zooarchaeology data provided additional insight into the detected zoonotic parasites’ potential host range. Network modeling revealed that rodents and canids living in close proximity to these cultures were most likely the main source of these zoonotic parasite infections. This communication includes a descriptive analysis of zoonotic parasites infecting Caribbean pre-Columbian cultures in Vieques and network modeling of parasite-host interaction. Our conclusions were based on microscopy and DNA reads extracted from approximately 1,400 to 540 year-old coprolites (un-calibrated years before present). Age and exposure to taphonomic conditions most likely caused the degradation of a portion of the organic material preserved in the coprolites, including parasite eggs, cysts and genetic material. In this study, singleton parasite reads were detected in the metagenomic data. This was likely the outcome of various factors. For instance, non-targeted metagenomic sequencing mainly obtains reads from abundant organisms within the sample, and in the case of fecal metagenomic datasets, these are commonly overpowered by high numbers of bacterial cells. In addition to small amounts of detectable parasite DNA in the feces, ancient DNA damage causes difficulty during sequencing and subsequent alignment of reads to an extant reference sequence. This along with limited representation of parasite genomes in curated reference databases limits the prediction of parasite homologue reads [1]. Furthermore, although contamination and sequencing errors are also a possibility, we believe that this is not the case as precautions were taken to avoid contamination with extant DNA. To overcome these challenges, we performed phylogenetic inference of predicted amino acid homologues to obtain as close as possible to an accurate taxonomic identification. To complement the inherent limitations of the analyses, some of the conclusions presented in this article include intellectual assumptions by the authors based on established knowledge of the field after analyzing and discussing the data.

Publications with shared reference:

0 publications found