Scientific Studies of Our Past

Parasitology in Paleopathology – New Perspectives Using Large Data Bases

Organizers: Dong Hoon Shin, Morgana Camacho, Johnica Morrow, Karl Reinhard

We are proposing this workshop for the 2018 Paleopathology Conference. The goal of this workshop is the demonstration of insights that can be gained from analysis of large data sets.  These data sets, ranging from 100 to 1,000 samples, can provide epidemiological insights into transmission and pathology.  Large data sets also provide insights into zoonotic transmission.  Most importantly, focused studies can connect parasitological infections with bone pathology.  We propose a combination of posters and presentations.  The core presentations are listed below.  The organizers will solicit additional papers in the coming months.

1) Dong Hoon Shin - - Dialogue between Paleoparasitology and History: the Scientific Data interpreted by the Studies on Historical Documents
2) Sergey Slepchenko - Parasitology and Pathoecology in Russia: Investigat…

We published our popular writing article about "The application of craniofacial reconstruction in archaeological science" in Quarterly Archaeology Magazine in South Korea. 

Yongjun Kim, PhD.
After graduated from Korea University, he taught students in high school. He then studied at Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute for 9 years (2008-2017). Finally, he got his PhD degree this year from the same college about Buddhist Archaeology of India. He is currently back to Seoul.

He will collaborate with us as visiting scholar to my lab (Lab of Bioanthropology, Paleopatholgy and History of Diseases, Seoul National University College of Medicine, South Korea), joining in our research projects at India, Sri Lanka and Russia for next several years.

Good Luck!!!

Investigation at the excavation site of Indus Valley Civilization.

For the Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology (2nd Edition), I become the author of a entry about "mummies" and "Paleoparasitology", along with my colleagues. The encyclopedia will be published in 2020.

I join in the newly launching paleopathology journal "Asian Journal of Paleopathology" published by Japanese Association of Paleopathologists as an associate editor.

I am currently doing collaboration with Dr. Shênia Novo (Researcher in Public Health, Coordinator of Teaching of the Department of Biological Sciences / DCB, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation / Fiocruz
National School of Public Health Sérgio Arouca / ENSP, Paleoparasitology Laboratory Eduardo Marques - Department of Biological Sciences / Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). She is great paleoparasitologist!! I am very happy to work with her. Thanks.  

Our paleoparasitological work will be presented in 25th Federation Meeting of Korean Basic Medical Scientists (Jun 30, 2017, Seoul)




Historical details about the meat consumption pattern and taeniases during Joseon period
Dong Hoon Shin, Jong-Yil Chai, Jong Ha Hong, Min Seo
Abstract Previous paleoparasitological study on Korean mummy specimens proved that the prevalence of Taenia spp. during the Joseon period was not much different from those of the early 20th century Korean population. However, when meat consumption patterns that must have been closely related to the taeniases was studied in the historical documents of Joseon period, we found that Joseon people did not eat much pork than we thought; but the consumption of meat was mainly concentrated in beef. The trend might have changed in Korea only around the 18th to 19th century when the pork started to have been enjoyed more than before. This fact is contrary to our preconception that beef consumption in the Joseon Dynasty was not c…

My new paper "the scientific and ethical background of the invasive studies on the Korean mummies of the Joseon dynasty" is published in Asian Journal of Paleopathology.

　In mummy studies of South Korea, the condition typically required by descendants and generally accepted by scientists is that mummies be immediately cremated upon completion of a relatively quick pathological investigation. Following the initial computed tomography (CT) scan, autopsies thus have been resorted in order to obtain as much information from Korean mummies as possible in the shortest time. In fact, judicious utilization of accumulated autopsyderived data improves the accuracy of radiological diagnosis, reducing the risk of CT-data misinterpretation. Tissue samples that could be invaluable to our future studies were also taken from mummified organs during autopsy. Although the preferential use of noninvasive techniques is also taken for granted in South Korea, invasive autopsy unavoidably takes p…

Anthropological Science is the official journal of Anthropological Society of Nippon. The journal is published quarterly in English. On April 2017, the special issue on paleopathology is out. And I join in the special issue work as co-organizer.

Please see my preface and article below;

>>Preface of Special Issue  by Fujita H and Shin DH.

>>Paleohealth based on dental pathology and cribra orbitalia from the ancient Egyptian settlement of Qau by HISASHI FUJITA, HIROTO ADACHI

>>The origin and early spread of the Black Death in Italy: first evidence of plague victims from 14th-century Liguria (northern Italy) by D. CESANA, O.J. BENEDICTOW, R. BIANUCCI

>>Paleopathology in the Piraino mummies as illustrated by X-rays by DARIO PIOMBINO-MASCALI, ALBERT R. ZINK, STEPHANIE PANZER

>>Estimation of parasite infection prevalence of Joseon people by paleoparasitological data updates from the ancient feces of pre-modern Korean mummies by MIN SEO, CHANG SEOK OH, JONG HA HONG…

On July 2017, my team will visit Tyumen (Russia), for collaborative study on the human cranium and teeth. Years ago, we signed MOU with Institute for Problems of the Development of the North, Siberian Branch of the Russion Academy of Sciences. Along with Dr. Сергей Слепченко, the researcher of the institute, we will do make a anthropometric study on the ancient bones of both countries (Russia and South Korea). 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- # Project 1: Anthropometric Studies on Cranium of West Siberia
● This project will undergo under the agreement of MOU between Institute for Problems of the Development of the North (Russia) and Institute of Forensic Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine (South Korea) 
● Date: July, 2017 
● Research contents: The main subject of our research is (1) comparing the anthropometric data of two ancient or medieval populations from different geographic regions. Some of human col…

Dear friends,

My team will join in the excavation at Rassagala site, Sri Lanka, in collabration with Dr. Shinde's team of Deccan College, India. The excavation is scheduled to be performed on Aug or Sep, 2017.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rassagala



Rassagala from Google Map

I am happy to say that new paper, "“Y chromosomal deletion pattern in Koreans inhabiting Jeju Island” by Ji Hyun Lee, Hong Xuan Jin, Sohee Cho, Han Na Kim, Hee Jin Seo, Kyoung-Jin Shin, Dong Hoon Shin, Soong Deok Lee, is accepted by Anthropologischer Anzeiger.

Our presentation for the 27th International Congress of International Society for Forensic Genetics (ISFG).

http://www.isfg2017.org/index.asp

PREDICTION OF ASIAN ETHNIC SUBGROUPS USING HID-ION AMPLISEQTM ANCESTRY

PANEL (O)

Lee. JH1, Kim. YK2, Cho. S3, Kim. MY3, DH. Shin3,4, Ann. JJ2, Ha. EH2, Lee. SD1,2

1Department of Forensic Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
2Department of Information Statistics, Yonsei University, Wonju, Korea
3Institute of Forensic Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
4Department of Anatomy, Seoul National University, College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea
e-mail : jh714@snu.ac.kr

Prediction of ethnicity in Asia can be approached in a variety of ways, but the method using Ancestry Informative Markers (AIMs) provides additional information. The HID-Ion AmpliSeqTM Ancestry Panel is a forensic multiplex platform consisted of 165 autosomal markers designed to provide biogeographic ancestry informatio…