Paleoparasitological analysis of samples from the Chehrabad salt mine (Northwestern Iran)

• Paleoparasitological analyses were performed on Chehrabad salt mine.
• Six taxa of intestinal parasites were identified in soil samples.
• The recovered pathogens show both human and animal parasitism at the site.
• Results bring information on health, diet and human-animal relationships.
• These findings are the first discovery of ancient intestinal parasites in Iran.

Paleoparasitological analyses were performed on soil samples recovered from an ancient salt mine in Chehrabad, northwestern Iran (2500 and 1500 years BP). Parasite extraction led to the recovery of a large variety of human and animal parasites, including whipworm (Trichuris sp.), roundworm (Ascaris sp.), tapeworm (Taenia sp. or Echinococcus sp.), lancet liver fluke (Dicrocoelium sp.), and horse and human pinworm (Oxyuris equi and Enterobius vermicularis). These results are among the first positive traces of ancient parasitism in Iran, and the analyses carried out on the Chehrabad salt mine thus contribute to the establishment of an ancient parasite database in this country. They also provide additional information about the lifeway of ancient miners, health, sanitary conditions, diet, as well as human and animal relationships during mining activities. Moreover, these results contribute to our knowledge of ancient parasitism in the Middle East, a key region for parasite history and host/parasite relationships.