A 5,000-year-old hunter-gatherer already plagued by Yersinia pestis.

A 5,000-year-old Yersinia pestis genome (RV 2039) is reconstructed from a hunter-fisher-gatherer (5300-5050 cal BP) buried at Rinnukalns, Latvia. RV 2039 is the first in a series of ancient strains that evolved shortly after the split of Y. pestis from its antecessor Y. pseudotuberculosis ∼7,000 years ago. The genomic and phylogenetic characteristics of RV 2039 are consistent with the hypothesis that this very early Y. pestis form was most likely less transmissible and maybe even less virulent than later strains. Our data do not support the scenario of a prehistoric pneumonic plague pandemic, as suggested previously for the Neolithic decline. The geographical and temporal distribution of the few prehistoric Y. pestis cases reported so far is more in agreement with single zoonotic events.

[The letters of Ernst Wilhelm Brücke to Rudolf Virchow 1850-1857]. / Die Briefe Ernst Wilhelm Brückes an Rudolf Virchow aus den Jahren 1850-1857.

Rudolf Virchow is one of the most prominent German physician of the nineteenth century. Virchow pioneered the modern concept of pathological processes by his application of the cell theory to explain the effects of disease in the organs and tissues of the body. He emphasized that diseases arose, not in organs or tissues in general, but primarily in their individual cells. Moreover, he campaigned vigorously for social reforms and contributed to the development of anthropology as a modern science. Ernst Wilhelm Brücke was an important researcher in most fields of physiology. His works were epoch-making and influential for our knowledge of the nature of cells and his optical works made the basis for the invention of the eye mirror which was later constructed by Helmholtz. He also is also known for his work on the physiology of language. For the first time the correspondence between these scientific celebrities is published.

Discovery of a letter from Rokitansky to Virchow about subependymal corpora amylacea.

Until recently, Rokitansky and Virchow were thought to have never exchanged letters. Recently, however, a letter from Rokitansky to Virchow dated 1853 was discovered. In this letter, Rokitansky commented on Virchow's discovery of subependymal corpora amylacea. This report comprises an English translation of this letter together with a historical appraisal and a short comment on the importance of corpora amylacea in the brain.

[Rokitansky and Virchow--the giants of pathology in disputatio]. / Rokitansky und Virchow--die Giganten der Pathologie in disputatio.

On the occasion of the bicentenary of Carl Rokitanskys birth, I was kindly asked to review the relationship between the two great pathologists, Rokitansky and Virchow. As Virchow specialist and editor of the first complete edition of his work, I found the task of writing about their relationship particularly interesting. Although much has written on the subject, I tried to find new points to further illuminate their relationship.