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6 OCTOBER 2023 ausdoc . com . au
Did Vlad shed tears of blood ?
Vlad the Impaler .
Kemal Atlay VLAD the Impaler may not have drunk human blood as legend suggests , but it turns out he probably did shed tears of blood .
Molecular analysis of proteins on letters written by Vlad — also known as Vlad Dracula — shines fresh light on the prince ’ s health during his rule of Wallachia , in what today is modern Romania .
The circumstances of his death in 1476 remain unknown , but researchers , led by Italy ’ s University of
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Catania , say Vlad likely had haemolacria and some kind of inflammatory condition .
Despite his “ brutal and sadistic ” nature and his responsibility for an estimated 80,000 deaths , including 20,000 by impalement , Vlad has remained a national hero in Romania owing to his military exploits .
To separate myth from reality , scientists used mass spectrometry and ethylene-vinyl acetate technology to analyse peptides and proteins from three letters Vlad wrote to
the ruler of the city of Sibiu , Thomas Altemberger .
The two best-preserved letters , dated 1475 , were stored in the Sibiu Archive for 500 years without restoration and were reportedly in “ excellent condition ”.
The third document , from 1457 , was also well preserved but underwent restoration efforts in Bucharest in the 20th century . At least one of the rag paper letters contained Vlad ’ s signature .
After separating out contaminants , the researchers identified 16 proteins “ certainly of human origin ” and 31 peptides of interest related to the skin , respiratory tract , eyes and blood .
“ In all three letters , some peptides related to proteins involved in ciliopathy or retinal diseases , or belonging to proteins associated with inflammatory processes , were also detected ,” they said .
Three peptides associated with proteins of tears and the retina were detected
‘ The peptides might provide a picture of his general health .’
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“ Although proteomics data cannot be considered exhaustive alone , altogether , these identifications might indicate that Dracula ‘ cried tears of blood ’ … as reported by some stories .”
They continued : “ The identification in all three documents of some peptides coming from breathing-related proteins and / or involved with some ciliopathies of the respiratory tract , together with peptides belonging to proteins associated with inflammatory processes , might provide a picture of the general health of Count Dracula , who probably also experienced inflammatory processes of the respiratory tract and / or of the skin .”
While the documents were “ probably ” handled by many people , they said it was “ presumable that the most prominent protein fingerprint should be related to Prince Vlad the Impaler ”.
The legend is that he inspired Bram Stoker ’ s Dracula , but literary scholars contest this , with suggestions the character was named after the Romanian term for the devil , dracul . Another debated myth is that Vlad enjoyed dipping his bread in the blood of his impaled victims .
Anal Chem 2023 ; 8 Aug .