Leprosy Was Lurking in The Americas Long Before Colonization, Study Finds

Leprosy Was Lurking in The Americas Long Before Colonization, Study Finds

Historians have for a long time believed that leprosy was introduced to the Americas by European settlers, but the latest research offers strong evidence to the contrary – suggesting that Indigenous Americans had already been dying of the disease for centuries.

Leprosy, primarily caused by Mycobacterium leprae, is considered a disease introduced into the Americas during European colonization. However, the recent discovery of a second pathogen causing leprosy, M. lepromatosis, mainly found in the Americas, challe