Almost two centuries ago, on March 26, 1827, one of the most influential composers of classical music, Ludwig van Beethoven, died in Vienna at the age of 56. But since then, the debates around the exact reasons for his death have never ceased between specialists.
Researchers have now used an unprecedented technique to shed new light on the untimely death of German composer Ludwig van Beethoven on March 26, 1827: by analyzing his DNA from strands of his hair.
liver disease
Their study, published Wednesday March 22, 2023 in the scientific journal Current Biology, revealed strong genetic predispositions to liver disease, as well as hepatitis B virus infection at the end of life, two factors that likely contributed when he died, most likely from cirrhosis, aggravated by alcohol consumption. But unfortunately they could not explain the cause of his progressive deafness, which caused so much pain to the author of the 9th Symphony.
In 1802, the composer had expressed his desire, in a letter to his brothers written in a moment of despair, that his illness be described after his death and made public. “We have sought to fulfill this wish”, said at a press conference Tristan Begg, a researcher at the University of Cambridge and lead author of the study. And even if the mystery still persists around some of the many pathologies from which Beethoven suffered, “we were extremely lucky (…) to obtain such fascinating results”, declared Tristan Begg, at the origin of this project started in 2014.
five wicks
Until now, research on Beethoven’s health has mainly come from his correspondence, his diary, notes from his doctors, or even an autopsy report. This time, the scientists looked at eight locks of hair presented as belonging to Beethoven, and from public or private collections. They determined that five of them were from a single male individual, with alterations showing that they dated back to the early 19th century.
Among these five locks, the history of transmission for two centuries is uninterrupted for two of them, and supported by rich documentation. One was given in 1826 by Beethoven himself to a musician friend, and the second comes from a family friend who arranged his funeral – until being auctioned off in 2016. These five wicks, which cover the last seven years of Beethoven’s life are almost certain to be authentic, according to the researchers. Three others, on the other hand, were disqualified, including one that had been used to support the hypothesis of death by lead poisoning, but in fact belonged to a woman.
The DNA sequencing then took place in Germany, in the laboratory of the Max-Plank Institute for Anthropology in Leipzig, where prehistoric men are usually studied. Unlike bone analysis, “in the hair, the DNA is very degraded“, explained Johannes Krause, head of the genetics department of this institute, and co-author of the study. “It was difficult to harvest enough DNA to assemble the genome.” Several meters of hair were used, and finally, three-quarters of the genome (all the genes of a living being) could be mapped.
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No new information on Beethoven’s deafness
Beethoven, who experienced at least two episodes of jaundice, the first of which was in 1821, presented “a considerable genetic predisposition” to liver disease, concludes the study. It also reveals that Beethoven had an infection with the hepatitis B virus, at least during the last months of his life, but which could have been earlier. However, a chronic infection is one of the major causes of cirrhosis. We also know that Beethoven was a heavy drinker. “So we believe that his illness stems from an interaction” between these three factors, explained Markus Nöthen, also co-author of the study.
On the other hand, the researchers could not issue a definitive conclusion for the composer’s intestinal problems (but lactose intolerance is excluded), nor especially for his deafness, which could have been caused by otosclerosis or Paget’s disease. . To conclude their work, the scientists compared Beethoven’s DNA with that of five Belgian men who shared with the composer a distant relative who lived in the 16th century, Aert van Beethoven. Surprise: the Y chromosome of these five men does not correspond to that of the musician. According to the researchers, the only possible explanation is an extramarital affair, somewhere between the seven generations separating this common ancestor and the birth of Beethoven, in Bonn in 1770. “You cannot exclude that Beethoven himself is illegitimate”, judged Tristan Begg. “It’s a possibility.”