Ancient pathogen genomics as an emerging tool for infectious disease research

Abstract

Over the past decade, a genomics revolution, made possible through the development of high-throughput sequencing, has triggered considerable progress in the study of ancient DNA, enabling complete genomes of past organisms to be reconstructed. A newly established branch of this field, ancient pathogen genomics, affords an in-depth view of microbial evolution by providing a molecular fossil record for a number of human-associated pathogens. Recent accomplishments include the confident identification of causative agents from past pandemics, the discovery of microbial lineages that are now extinct, the extrapolation of past emergence events on a chronological scale and the characterization of long-term evolutionary history of microorganisms that remain relevant to public health today. In this Review, we discuss methodological advancements, persistent challenges and novel revelations gained through the study of ancient pathogen genomes.

This article reviews recent advances in ancient pathogen genomics, from methodological improvements in retrieving whole genomes to evolutionary analyses of ancient pathogens that remain relevant to public health. Focusing on the evolutionary history of the plague pathogen Yersinia pestis, the authors present unique insights afforded by the study of ancient pathogen genomes.