The Characterization of Helicobacter pylori DNA Associated with Ancient Human Remains Recovered from a Canadian Glacier

A novel Helicobacter pylori strain, recovered from the stomach tissue of the Kwäday Dän Ts'ìnchi individual—a 17th to 19th-century human remains found in the Tatshenshini-Alsek Park, British Columbia—reveals a hybrid vacA allele structure. This ancient strain combines Western (s2) and Asian/Native American (m1d/m2a) genetic markers, suggesting historical contact between European and Indigenous populations in northwestern Canada. Phylogenetic analysis links the strain to previously documented Native American and Asian H. pylori lineages, indicating shared ancestry with early migrants to the Americas. The study provides the first ancient vacA sequence data for this bacterium, offering insights into its evolutionary history and geographic dispersion.

Swanston, T., Haakensen, M., Deneer, H., & Walker, E. G. (2011). The Characterization of Helicobacter pylori DNA Associated with Ancient Human Remains Recovered from a Canadian Glacier. PLoS ONE, 6(2), e16864. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0016864