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Germs, Genes, & Civilization: How Epidemics Shaped Who We Are Today

Page 28

by David P. Clark


  transmission method, 16, 39, 215

  in white versus black populations, 236

  tularemia, as biological warfare, 134

  Tuskegee syphilis study, 147

  typhoid fever

  bacterial cause of, 64

  carriers of, 46

  cystic fibrosis and, 81

  resistance to, 51

  transmission method, 16, 215

  typhus versus, 127

  typhus

  in indigenous Americans, 195, 207-208

  malnutrition and, 110

  origin of, 209-211

  as spotted fever, 208

  transmission method, 29, 39, 211

  types of, 209

  typhoid fever versus, 127

  virulence of, 45

  in warfare, 126-129

  in World War I, 125

  U–V

  U.S. Public Health Service, 147

  Ug99 variant, 251

  unknown viruses, immune system response to, 241

  unreliability of biological warfare, 138-139

  urban cultures. See cities

  Urban II (pope), 124

  vaccination

  Catholic Church’s view on, 172

  indirect immunity and, 52

  premise for, 48

  of soldiers, 131

  Vandals, effect of disease on, 89

  Variola major, 214

  Variola minor, 214

  Varro, Marcus, 37, 84

  VD. See venereal disease (VD)

  vectors

  effect on disease virulence, 44-46

  explained, 39

  Vedic culture of India, 176

  vegetables, contamination of, 94-95

  venereal disease (VD), 38, 141. See also names of specific diseases

  ancient civilizations and, 159-162

  bloodborne diseases, 149-150

  effect on AIDS transmission, 152

  embarrassment, 141

  naming customs, 146

  origin of, 145-147

  promiscuity rates versus propaganda, 144-145

  puritanism versus promiscuity, 141-143

  rates of, 144

  relationship with skin infections, 148-149

  religious reaction to, 154-155

  verruga Peruana, 197

  Vesuvius (volcano), 87

  Vibrio cholerae, 71

  Victorian-era England, prostitution statistics, 142

  Vietnam War, 126

  Vikings, 211-212

  Villalba, Joaquin, 209

  violence, accidental versus intentional, 34

  viral diseases. See also viruses; names of specific diseases

  cell culture techniques for identification, 238

  in cities, 214-215

  emerging disease examples, 237-239

  origin of, 20

  rate of evolution, 23

  transmission methods of emerging diseases, 241

  virulence of emerging diseases, 239-240

  virulence of disease, 24-28. See also transmission methods

  crowding, effect of, 41-44

  Ebolavirus example, 40-41

  efficiency of transmission methods and, 242

  emerging diseases, 239-240

  intentions, lack of role in, 206-207

  misconceptions about, 33-34

  via mutation, 60-62

  oscillation of, 42-44

  via plasmids, 63-65

  reservoirs and carriers, effect of, 46-47

  Spanish flu of 1918, 243-244

  vectors, effect of, 44-46

  viruses. See also viral diseases

  as biological warfare, 134

  lack in indigenous Americans, 195

  mutation rate, 61-62

  origin of diarrheal diseases, 70-71

  as plasmids, 64-65

  RNA viruses, 62

  vulnerability of cities to waterborne diseases, 76-78

  W

  warfare. See also invaders; military

  biological warfare

  against indigenous Americans, 203-204

  against rabbits, 137-138

  agents used in, 134-135

  amateur attempts at, 132-133

  anthrax as, 132

  cost of protective measures, 131

  genetic engineering of diseases, 139

  origin of, 130

  psychological effects of, 131

  unreliability of, 138-139

  in World Wars I and II, 136-137

  large versus small armies, effect of disease on, 123-124

  mortality rate versus disease, 115-116, 125-126

  spread of disease during, 116-118

  tropical diseases and, 122-123

  typhus and, 126-129

  water contamination

  effect on disease virulence, 46

  as transmission method, 39

  water supply

  cholera and, 72-73

  in Indus Valley civilization, 74-78

  waterborne diseases. See also names of specific diseases

  climate change and, 245

  vulnerability of cities to, 76-78

  “well-seasoned troops,” origin of phrase, 116

  Wells, H. G., 252

  West Nile virus, 40, 208

  Western Europeans versus Eastern Europeans, long-term benefits of bubonic plague, 219-221

  wheat rust fungus, 251

  wheat scab, 251

  White Plague. See tuberculosis

  white population, tuberculosis in, 236

  whooping cough, transmission method, 215

  wild animals, die-offs of, 237

  witch hunts, fungal diseases and, 108-109

  witchcraft, 180

  World War I, 116, 125

  biological warfare in, 136-137

  typhus in, 128

  World War II, 116, 125

  anthrax testing during, 132

  biological warfare in, 136-137

  worms in ancient religious beliefs, 168

  Wycliffe, John, 222

  X–Y–Z

  Xerxes, 123-124

  yaws, 148, 234

  yellow fever, 15, 233

  role in warfare, 122-123

  virulence of, 45

  Yersinia enterocolitica, 63

  Yersinia pestis, 63, 132, 135, 139, 216-217

  Zhouhou Beijifang (Ge Hong), 19, 210

 

 

 


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