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Smallpox DNA in Chilean mummies confirms Europeans brought the disease to the Americas
Scientists from Ireland and Chile have isolated smallpox virus (Variola) DNA from Chilean mummies, providing the first genetic proof that European colonisers brought the disease to the Americas. The virus is estimated to have killed around 4 million Indigenous people, who had no natural immunity to the pathogen. Until now, the European-origin theory rested solely on historical records.
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