Korean J Parasitol.  2019 Dec;57(6):575-580. 10.3347/kjp.2019.57.6.575.

Intestinal Parasites in an Ottoman Period Latrine from Acre (Israel) Dating to the Early 1800s CE

• Eskew WH
• Ledger ML
• Lloyd A
• Pyles G
• Gosker J
• Mitchell P

• KMID: 2469987
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3347/kjp.2019.57.6.575

Abstract

The aim of this study is to determine the species of parasites that affected the inhabitants of the city of Acre on the coast of the eastern Mediterranean during the Ottoman Period. This is the first archaeological study of parasites in the Ottoman Empire. We analysed sediment from a latrine dating to the early 1800s for the presence of helminth eggs and protozoan parasites which caused dysentery. The samples were examined using light microscopy and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. We found evidence for roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides), whipworm (Trichuris trichiura), fish tapeworm (Dibothriocephalus sp.), Taenia tapeworm (Taenia sp.), lancet liver fluke (Dicrocoelium dendriticum), and the protozoa Giardia duodenalis and Entamoeba histolytica. The parasite taxa recovered demonstrate the breadth of species present in this coastal city. We consider the effect of Ottoman Period diet, culture, trade and sanitation upon risk of parasitism in this community living 200 years ago.

Keyword

Dysentery; Mediterranean; Ottoman Empire; ELISA; helminth; paleoparasitology; protozoa

MeSH Terms

Cestoda
Diet
Dysentery
Eggs
Entamoeba histolytica
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Fasciola hepatica
Giardia lamblia
Helminths
Microscopy
Ottoman Empire
Ovum
Parasites*
Sanitation
Taenia
Toilet Facilities*