2023-03-22 ケンブリッジ大学
ベートーヴェンがかかっていた胃腸の不調の原因は特定されなかったが、彼がアルコールを飲むのを好んでいたことが示唆された。
研究チームは、彼がHepatitis Bの感染にかかっていた証拠を見つけた。また、認証されたサンプルを用いて調査が行われ、ベートーヴェンがかつてかかっていた鉛中毒の疑いは晴れた。
この研究は、クレア・ホール大学、カンブリア大学、KUルーヴェン、FamilyTreeDNA、ボン大学病院、ボン大学、Beethoven-Haus Bonn、Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropologyによって行われ、Current Biologyで発表された。
<関連情報>
- https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/beethovens-dna-reveals-health-and-family-history-clues
- https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(23)00181-1
ルートヴィヒ・ヴァン・ベートーヴェンの毛髪のゲノム解析 Genomic analyses of hair from Ludwig van Beethoven
Tristan James Alexander Begg,Axel Schmidt,Arthur Kocher,Maarten H.D. Larmuseau,Göran Runfeldt,Paul Andrew Maier,John D. Wilson,Rodrigo Barquera,Carlo Maj,András Szolek,Michael Sager,Stephen Clayton,Alexander Peltzer,Ruoyun Hui,Julia Ronge,Ella Reiter,Cäcilia Freund,Marta Burri,Franziska Aron,Anthi Tiliakou,Joanna Osborn,Doron M. Behar,Malte Boecker,Guido Brandt,Isabelle Cleynen,Christian Strassburg,Kay Prüfer,Denise Kühnert,William Rhea Meredith,Markus M. Nöthen,Robert David Attenborough,Toomas Kivisild,Johannes Krause
Current Biology Published:March 22, 2023
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2023.02.041
Highlights
•Eight locks of hair attributed to Ludwig van Beethoven underwent genomic analyses
•We deemed five of these authentic and sequenced Beethoven’s genome to high coverage
•Beethoven had a predisposition for liver disease and became infected with hepatitis B
•We also discovered an extra-pair-paternity event in Beethoven’s paternal line
Summary
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) remains among the most influential and popular classical music composers. Health problems significantly impacted his career as a composer and pianist, including progressive hearing loss, recurring gastrointestinal complaints, and liver disease. In 1802, Beethoven requested that following his death, his disease be described and made public. Medical biographers have since proposed numerous hypotheses, including many substantially heritable conditions. Here we attempt a genomic analysis of Beethoven in order to elucidate potential underlying genetic and infectious causes of his illnesses. We incorporated improvements in ancient DNA methods into existing protocols for ancient hair samples, enabling the sequencing of high-coverage genomes from small quantities of historical hair. We analyzed eight independently sourced locks of hair attributed to Beethoven, five of which originated from a single European male. We deemed these matching samples to be almost certainly authentic and sequenced Beethoven’s genome to 24-fold genomic coverage. Although we could not identify a genetic explanation for Beethoven’s hearing disorder or gastrointestinal problems, we found that Beethoven had a genetic predisposition for liver disease. Metagenomic analyses revealed furthermore that Beethoven had a hepatitis B infection during at least the months prior to his death. Together with the genetic predisposition and his broadly accepted alcohol consumption, these present plausible explanations for Beethoven’s severe liver disease, which culminated in his death. Unexpectedly, an analysis of Y chromosomes sequenced from five living members of the Van Beethoven patrilineage revealed the occurrence of an extra-pair paternity event in Ludwig van Beethoven’s patrilineal ancestry.
