Scientists say a species of bacteria rewrites the history of when an infectious and potentially deadly disease first arrived in the Americas. And it was long before the arrival of European explorers.

Researchers from the Institut Pasteur in Paris, France, with help from a U.S. university, recently announced in a news release that a second species of bacteria is also responsible for the disease known as leprosy, or Hansen's disease, in the Americas. 

In years past, many believed that the bacterium known as Mycobacterium leprae caused leprosy and that it was only spread in America by early European explorers and settlers.

However, the revelation of a second bacterium puts that theory of blaming the settlers on its head, as an existing strain was already on the continents calling the New World home.

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The bacterium Mycobacterium lepromatosis existed and infected humans for 1,000 years prior to Europeans arriving, researchers say.

Dr. Maria Lopopolo, the first author of the study and researcher at the Laboratory of Microbial Paleogenomics at the Institut Pasteur, said it changes everything about leprosy in the Americas.

"This discovery transforms our understanding of the history of leprosy in America. It shows that a form of the disease was already endemic among Indigenous populations well before the Europeans arrived," she said in the release.

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The study — led by scientists from the Laboratory of Microbial Paleogenomics at the Institut Pasteur, alongside the French National Center for Scientific Research, and the University of Colorado in the U.S. — began after Mycobacterium lepromatosis was found in a Mexican patient in 2008, and red squirrels in the British Isles in 2016.

Using advanced genetic techniques to reconstruct the genomes of Mycobacterium lepromatosis from ancient individuals from Argentina and Canada, scientists found that the two strains from the different regions were genetically close in the Mycobacterium genome family tree, meaning that the bacteria spread rapidly throughout the continent.

The release stated that the results confirmed that Mycobacterium lepromatosis had already spread throughout North and South America.

Researchers worked in collaboration with indigenous communities, various international institutions and archaeologists, according to the release, and were able to study over 800 DNA samples from ancient human remains and recent medical cases showing signs of leprosy.

Nicolás Rascovan, the lead author of the study at the Institut Pasteur, said that the research proves that human history can be changed.

"We are just beginning to uncover the diversity and global movements of this recently identified pathogen," he said. "This study allows us to hypothesize that there might be unknown animal reservoirs."

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says leprosy can affect the nerves, skin and eyes of patients, and is treated with antibiotics. Up to 225 people in the U.S., and 250,000 around the world, contract Hansen's disease, according to the CDC.

Israel on Thursday recovered the bodies of two hostages who were abducted in the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre that ignited the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on X that the remains of Gadi Haggai and Judy Weinstein-Haggai had been returned in a special operation by the army and the Shin Bet internal security agency.

"Together with all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I extend our heartfelt condolences to the dear families. Our hearts ache for the most terrible loss. May their memory be blessed," Netanyahu said in a statement.

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Kibbutz Nir Oz announced the deaths of Weinstein and Haggai, both in their early 70s, in December 2023. 

The couple were taking an early morning walk near their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on the morning of Oct. 7 when Hamas militants burst across the border into Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251.

In the early hours of the morning, Weinstein was able to call emergency services and let them know that both she and her husband had been shot and send a message to her family.

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The couple were survived by two sons and two daughters and seven grandchildren, the kibbutz said.

The rescue operation was conducted by IDF troops in coordination with the Intelligence Directorate and special forces. The operation was made possible as a result of precise intelligence provided by the Hostage Task Force, the Intelligence Directorate, and the ISA. 

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Following an identification procedure carried out by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the Israel Police, and the IDF Manpower Directorate's Hostage Task Force, the family and the community of Nir Oz were notified.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum called the couples' return "pain and heartbreaking." 

"[Y]et it also brings healing to our uncertainty. Their return reminds us all that it is the state's duty to bring everyone home, so that we, the families, together with all the people of Israel, can begin the process of healing and recovery," the Forum said. 

We want to emphasize today—a grave is not a privilege. A grave is a basic human right, without which personal and national recovery is impossible."

The Forum called upon leaders on both sides to reach an agreement to bring all 56 remaining hostages – "the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for burial."

"There is no need to wait another 608 agonizing days for this. The mission can be completed as early as tomorrow morning. This is what the majority of the Israeli people want," the Forum said. "We want to emphasize today—a grave is not a privilege. A grave is a basic human right, without which personal and national recovery is impossible."