Cities may have provided the measles virus with an environment to succeed Iain Masterton / AlamyThe measles virus crossed over to people from cattle around 500 BC, supporting the idea that it could only get established as a human disease once large enough cities had developed. “It’s not proof, but it’s compatible with the notion that large cities might have provided the opportunity for it to emerge,” says Sébastien Calvignac-Spencer at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin, Germany. Measles used to infect nearly all children until vaccination began. AdvertisementIt was already known that the measles virus evolved from the rinderpest one because they are so genetically similar, but it was unclear when it made the jump. But that conclusion was based on analysis of fairly recent measles viruses.

Source: The North Africa Journal June 18, 2020 18:00 UTC