The British scientific journal Current Biology published a study indicating that the great German composer Ludwig van Beethoven had a genetic predisposition to liver disease.
Scientists are of the opinion that this factor, along with alcohol addiction and infection with the hepatitis B virus, worsened the general state of health of the musician and brought his death closer. In 1802, Beethoven asked doctors to describe his illness – progressive hearing loss – in as much detail as possible. More than 200 years later, modern researchers have granted the pianist’s wish thanks to DNA testing after five strands of hair were taken.
© Current Biology “Our primary goal was to shed light on Beethoven’s health issues, which are known to include progressive hearing loss from his thirties, which eventually led to functional deafness in 1818.” word edition by Johannes Krause of the Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology of the Max Planck Society.
Thanks to several independent sources, scientists were able to confirm that the hair belonged to the musician. However, analysis of Beethoven’s DNA has not allowed researchers to identify the exact cause of his deafness. They also found no problems with the composer’s gastrointestinal tract. But they managed to find out that the German was genetically predisposed to liver disease. Thus, the authors of the study were able to refute the hypothesis that Ludwig van Beethoven could have died from lead poisoning.
Earlier, The Eastern Herald told how scientists implanted a chip in the human brain, with which blind people can see. Russian scientists help visually impaired people see not with their eyes, but with their brains. The retina and the optic nerve are replaced by a video camera – an implant implanted in the neurovessels.
Current Biology: Scientists Studied Beethoven’s Hair and Decided He May Have Died of Cirrhosis of the Liver
