Ask A Grown-up: How Did The First Person Catch Chickenpox?

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Neil Ferguson
Professor Neil Ferguson: 'The first chickenpox viruses probably emerged 70m years ago, around the time dinosaurs went extinct, and infected our distant ancestors. Since that time, chickenpox viruses have evolved with us.' Photograph: Philip Partridge/GNM Imaging
Professor Neil Ferguson: 'The first chickenpox viruses probably emerged 70m years ago, around the time dinosaurs went extinct, and infected our distant ancestors. Since that time, chickenpox viruses have evolved with us.' Photograph: Philip Partridge/GNM Imaging
Ask a grown-upLife and style This article is more than 12 years oldAsk a grown-up: how did the first person catch chickenpox?This article is more than 12 years oldProfessor Neil Ferguson, head of the department of infectious disease epidemiology at London's Imperial College, answers six-year-old Marta's questionProfessor Neil FergusonSat 8 Jun 2013 07.00 BSTShare

The chickenpox virus (which has the scientific name of Varicella Zoster virus) has been around for a lot longer than human beings. The first chickenpox viruses probably emerged 70m years ago, around the time dinosaurs went extinct, and infected our distant ancestors – probably small furry mammals that lived in family groups in trees. Since that time, chickenpox viruses have evolved with us.

In fact, the origins of chickenpox are even older: chickenpox belongs to a family of viruses called the herpes viruses, which is perhaps 500m years old. You might wonder how we know this. The answer lies in the genetic code – DNA – inside all living things, including viruses. By comparing the genetic code of species alive today, and knowing how slowly it takes that code to change (through a process called mutation), we can calculate roughly how long a species has existed.

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Tag » Why Is It Called Chickenpox