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100			_aFuchs, Katharina _952327
245			_aInfectious diseases and Neolithic transformations: Evaluating biological and archaeological proxies in the German loess zone between 5500 and 2500 BCE/
260			_bSage, _c2019.
300			_aVol 29, issue 10, 2019 : (1545-1557 p.).
520			_aIt is a common assumption that – compared with the Mesolithic – the adoption of Neolithic lifeways was accompanied by a higher risk of infection and the development of epidemic diseases. Such a hypothesis seems plausible when considering singular archaeological parameters like increasing population density and palaeopathological indicators of poor health. However, evidence for the far-reaching consequences of epidemics has not yet been examined. Thus, the relevance of infectious diseases as triggers for transformation processes in the Neolithic remains to be identified. By reviewing specific archaeological, genetic and palaeopathological proxies gained from groups of individuals that inhabited the German loess zone from the early to the final Neolithic, we provide a diachronic view of the periods between 5500 and 2500 BCE with regard to postulated indicators of epidemic events. Our analyses of the archaeological proxies suggest major transformations in domestic strategies and mortuary practices, especially in the middle and late Neolithic. Interestingly, mass burials indicative of epidemic events are lacking. Ancient DNA results on pathogens confirm single infections throughout the Neolithic, but there is no clear evidence for diseases of epidemic proportions. The osteological records are not conclusive since the majority of osseous changes are unspecific with regard to the cause and course of infections. We conclude that currently neither biological nor archaeological proxies suggest substantial contributions of epidemics to Neolithic transformations in the German loess zone. This finding contrasts with the general assumption of a higher risk of infection and the development of epidemic diseases during the Neolithic.
650			_aancient DNA, _952328
650			_aarchaeology, _950689
650			_adomestic strategies, _952329
650			_a infectious disease, _952330
650			_a mortuary practice, _952331
650			_a multidisciplinary approach, _952332
650			_a Neolithic, _951691
650			_apalaeopathology _952333
650			_aepidemics, _952334
650			_aGerman loess zone, _952335
650			_ahuman remains, _952336
700			_aRinne, Christoph _952337
700			_aDrummer, Clara _952338
700			_a Immel, Alexander _952339
700			_aKrause-Kyora, Ben _952340
700			_aNebel, Almut _952341
773	0		_012756 _916504 _dLondon: Sage Publication Ltd, 2019. _tHolocene/ _x09596836
856			_uhttps://doi.org/10.1177/0959683619857230
942			_2ddc _cART
999			_c12877 _d12877