the black death Flashcards
what’s the hidden meaning behind the song “ring around the rosy”?
the black death
ring around the rosy = lesions
pocket fully of posy = stench (tho it was transmitted by smell)
ashes, ashes = bodies were burned
we fall down = death
describe the yersinia bacterial genus (characteristics)
gram-
rod-shaped
what are the 3 pathogenic species of the yersinia genus? what do they cause?
y. entercolitica = yersinionsis, a rare cause of diarrhea and abdominal pain
y. pestis = plague
y. pseudotuberculosis = tuberculosis-like symptoms in animals AND enteritis in humans
who discovered yersinia pestis
discovered by Alexandre Yersin and Kitasato Shibasaburo in the late 1800s
did yersinia pestis really cause black death
if one’s infected, there would be bacteria in the blood which would get lodged in teeth (it’s hard & can protect
DNA)
sequence (nearly) the entire genome of Y. pestis using victim’s teeth –
this is the closest form of proof that Y. pestis caused the Black Death
how long is incubation of the plague? when may death occur from the plague?
3-7 days
2-4 days following incubation
— MAY occur
what are the symptoms of the plague?
patients experience sudden onset of fever, chills, headaches, muscle pain, weakness
painful swellings (buboes) of the lymph nodes in the armpits, legs, neck, or groin
high fever, delirium and mental deterioration, large blackish pustules that burst, vomiting of blood, bleeding in the lungs
name the 3 historical plague events in order?
plague of justinian
the black death
3rd plague pandemic
describe the 1st plague event
plague of justinian
- named after the Eastern Roman Emperor justinian
started in the 6th (541 AD) century
spread to Mediterranean, Italy, and throughout Europe
around 50% of the population is believed to have died
– estimated to have killed 100 million people
continued in cycles for another 200 years until about 750 AD then disappeared for approximately 800 years
describe the 2nd plague event
the black death
– a medieval pandemic
originated in Asia and reached Europe in the late 1340s
reduced global population from ~450 million to ~350 million
—- killed approximately 25 million Europeans (1/3 the total population)
what are plague doctors?
during the black death
normal people who assumed physician’s role
put flowers and herbs in their beak to protect themselves as they thought the cause was “bad air”
— didn’t actually protected them from the plague (but did protect from pneumonic)
— but their clothes that fully covered them did
how did the plague destroy the European feudal system during the black death?
plague killed the rich/powerful, creating vacancies for positions of
authority to be filled (e.g. physicians, clergy, gravediggers)
provided new opportunities for peasants
what was believed to have caused the black death?
God’s anger or Satan’s influence – led to the persecution of strangers, minorities, and witches
describe the 3rd plague event
started in China in 1850s → spread to ALL continents, where it remained active until 1959
> 12 million deaths in China & India alone
reached San Francisco in 1900 → infected rats on ships exchanged w/ fleas and local wildlife
currently endemic in Southwestern U.S. (carried by animals)
describe the infection phase of pathogenesis of yersinia pestis (in rodents and fleas)
a zoonotic pathogen
— organisms live in rodents and are transmitted by fleas
causes “blocking” in the flea, a biofilm formation in the proventriculus “starving fleas”, makes them regurgitate
rodents = reservoir
fleas = vectors
