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Researchers Sequence 16th-Century Smallpox from Two Mummies

7/31/2026

Summary

Scientists Recover Smallpox

Scientists led by Bruno Romero González (researcher) recovered variola virus DNA from two mummified bodies dated 1492-1631 CE at Camarones 9.
Their smallpox genomes are >99.9 % identical, forming the CAM9 lineage that bridges European and modern strains, and lack 49 genes, indicating adaptation by late 1500s.
Published in Science, the study estimates smallpox killed three to four million Indigenous people across the Americas and urges genomic capacity in the Global South.

Summary

Researchers Decode Smallpox

The two individuals were placed in natural bundle burials with camelid wool blankets and grave goods.
Constanza de la Fuente Castro said the mummies were not chemically altered, unlike Egyptian mummies.
Researchers from Trinity College Dublin and Universidad de Chile co-authored a Science paper decoding ancient smallpox DNA.
Officials are using the virus’s 16th-century slowdown as a template for better vaccine rollout and outbreak tracking.

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Scientists Recover Smallpox

Scientists led by Bruno Romero González (researcher) recovered variola virus DNA from two mummified bodies dated 1492-1631 CE at Camarones 9.
Their smallpox genomes are >99.9 % identical, forming the CAM9 lineage that bridges European and modern strains, and lack 49 genes, indicating adaptation by late 1500s.
Published in Science, the study estimates smallpox killed three to four million Indigenous people across the Americas and urges genomic capacity in the Global South.

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