Centuries later, the Black Death still has a big impact on our immune systems, study shows
CBSN
Our Medieval ancestors left us with a biological legacy: Genes that may have helped them survive the Black Death make us more susceptible to certain diseases today.
It's a prime example of the way germs shape us over time, scientists said in a new study published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
"Our genome today is a reflection of our whole evolutionary history" as we adapt to different germs, said Luis Barreiro, a senior author of the research. Some, like those behind the bubonic plague, have had a big impact on our immune systems.
A Thai woman believed to be among the worst serial killers in the kingdom's history was convicted and sentenced to death Wednesday for poisoning a friend with cyanide, in the first of her 14 murder trials.
Forty-five prominent activists in Hong Kong were sentenced to jail for up to 10 years on Tuesday, sparking criticism from foreign governments and rights groups. Beijing defended the decisions.
When Savannah Meadows had lunch last October with her mother, Sharon Turcott, Meadows was "all smiles," the mother told CBS News.
Zhytomyr, Ukraine — Exactly 1,000 days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, Russia's defense ministry accused Ukrainian forces on Tuesday of firing six U.S.-made and -supplied ATACMS missiles at the Russian region of Bryansk. If confirmed, it could be the first time Ukrainian troops had taken advantage of President Biden easing restrictions over the weekend on Ukraine's use of the U.S.-made missiles to strike targets deeper inside Russian territory.
In the wake of former President Donald Trump's re-election, Israel's far-right minister of finance suggested the country would look to annex the occupied West Bank in 2025. Here's what you need to know:
Police in Russia are investigating after renowned Russian ballet dancer Vladimir Shklyarov reportedly fell to his death over the weekend. He was 39.
President Biden's decision to allow Ukraine to fire U.S.-made and supplied missiles deeper into Russia — a major policy shift announced over the weekend after months of intense lobbying by Kyiv — has drawn a furious response from Moscow. While there was no immediate reaction directly from the man who launched the nearly three-year war on his neighboring nation, lawmakers aligned with President Vladimir Putin in Russia said Monday that the move was unacceptable and warned it could lead to a third world war.
Tel Aviv — After more than a year of bombing and homelessness, Gazans are looking to a new administration in Washington for help. President-elect Donald Trump's election victory has raised hopes and fears among the five million residents of the Palestinian territories — the warn-torn Gaza Strip and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
President Biden has given the OK to lift restrictions that will allow Ukraine to use U.S.-provided long-range weapons to strike deep into Russian territory, a U.S. official confirmed to CBS News on Sunday. The move is a significant change to U.S. policy in the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict.
Tropical Storm Sara was downgraded to a tropical depression after it made landfall in Belize on Sunday as forecasters expect heavy rain to continue and cause life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides.
The main spokesman for Hezbollah was killed in an Israeli airstrike on central Beirut on Sunday, an official with the militant group said.