By Emeka Chiaghanam
Kuru, an unusual epidemic with
its origins shrouded in the practice of endocannibalism, has left an indelible
mark on the Fore nation in the interior of Papua New Guinea. While estimated to
have surfaced in the 1920s, it was only in the early 1950s that Australian
explorers documented this peculiar disease, which manifested almost exclusively
among the Fore people.
Referred to as the
"laughing disease," Kuru presents common symptoms including tremors,
loss of motor coordination, and, in its advanced stage, uncontrollable fits of
laughter. With a progressive nature that unfolds over approximately two years,
the prognosis for Kuru is fatal in nearly 100% of cases. The outbreaks of this
disease have a direct link to the religious practice of endocannibalism, where
members of the Fore nation consume organs and tissues of their deceased family
or clan members, believing it accelerates the liberation of souls from their
bodies.
Notably, the majority of Kuru
victims were women and children. This trend emerged due to the preference for
men to receive limbs and muscles in anthropophagic rituals, leaving women and
children to consume internal organs, particularly brain matter.
Modern understanding attributes
Kuru to prions—an infectious agent comprised of malformed proteins,
concentrated primarily in the central nervous system. The prevalence of
endogamy in small, isolated communities may have contributed to the disease's
transmission, akin to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
During the late 1950s, Kuru
claimed the lives of approximately 270 people each year within the small Fore
ethnic group. However, due in part to the efforts of public health workers and
missionaries, the disease experienced a precipitous decline, culminating in no
reported deaths since 2010. Debates persist regarding the last victim's demise,
occurring in either 2005 or 2009. Despite this apparent success, Kuru cannot be
deemed eradicated, given the prion's extended incubation period, lasting up to
two decades.
Among the scarce survivors of Kuru, a pattern of immunity was observed, prevalent in the global population but absent among the Fore who abstained from traditional rituals. This intriguing revelation strongly suggests that endocannibalism was a practice among our ancestors as well, adding a layer of complexity to the fading legacy of Kuru.
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