New analysis of Otzi the Iceman's brain tissue has revealed that
Europe's oldest mummy likely died of a head injury.
The study conducted by research teams at Saarland and Kiel
University and published in the journal Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences,
focused on proteins found in two brain samples from Ötzi recovered with the
help of a computer-controlled endoscope.
Researchers say they identified 502 different proteins, 10 of
which were related to blood and coagulation.
They also reportedly found evidence of an accumulation of
proteins related to stress response and wound healing.
This coincides with the results of a 2007 CAT scan of Otzi's
brain which revealed dark spots at the back of his cerebrum, indicating he
suffered a blow to the head that caused the brain to collide with the back of
the skull.
Otzi the Iceman's body
was found by hikers in the Alps in 1991. Photo: Getty
It is also understood that Otzi had been hit in the shoulder by
a deadly artery-piercing arrow and that he had an undigested meal in his
stomach when he died, suggesting he may have been ambushed.
"Proteins are the decisive players in tissues and cells, and
they conduct most of the processes which take place in cells," Andreas
Tholey, a scientist at Germany's Kiel University and a researcher on the new
Ötzi study, said in a statement.
"Identification of the proteins is therefore key to
understanding the functional potential of a particular tissue," Tholey
continued.
"DNA is always constant, regardless of from where it
originates in the body, whereas proteins provide precise information about what
is happening in specific regions within the body."
Dutch artists Adrie
Kennis and Alfons Kennis used scientists findings to build a model of what Otzi
the Iceman would have looked like. Photo: Getty
Since his frozen body was found by a pair of hikers in the Alps
in 1991, scientists have studied Otzi with intense scrutiny.
They have been able to reconstruct his face, last meal, his
clothing and his genome.
Although this latest discovery brings scientists closer to
solving the mystery of Otzi the Iceman, researchers say it is still unclear
whether his brain injury was caused by being bashed over the head or by falling
after being struck with the arrow.
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