Name: From BRCA to the Black Death: Tracing an Inherited Gene through Time and Across Continents
Start: 2026-01-30T18:30:00-06:00
End: 2026-01-30T19:30:00-06:00
Location: Vinegar Hill Mall, 107 W. Cook Street, Springfield, IL

From BRCA to the Black Death: Tracing an Inherited Gene through Time and Across Continents

In 2017, a family uncovered a genetic mutation that sparked a fascinating investigation into their ancestral roots. This journey traces the inherited gene back to modern-day Norway and deep into 14th-century Europe. Join Curator of History, Erika Holst, for a talk to explore the story of medical discovery, and learn how the Black Death connects to the BRCA1 mutation.
This event is a part of the National Endowment for the Arts Big Read! The Illinois State Museum, in cooperation with the Illinois State Museum Society, has chosen to center the Big Read on “Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law” by Mary Roach. This nonfiction book is chock-full of interesting and humorous stories of human-wildlife conflict, cooperation, and cohabitation. Attendees will be gifted a copy of “Fuzz,” so come on by for a free book so you can get in on the Big Read!