Dracula 'cried tears of blood,' says new study

Dracula suffered from hemolacria

The researchers claim that the subject of their study suffered from hemolacria, a condition in which there is the presence of blood in a person’s tears.

The team studied and analyzed proteins and peptides extracted from three letters that were written by Vlad III in the mid-15th century AD. They used high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) and ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) technology on the letters.

HRMS is a powerful tool for the analysis and determination of elemental compositions and the identification of unknowns. The team used the EVA technology to harvest the proteins taken from the letters.

The team characterized about 500 peptides, of which 100 peptides were of human origin. Only 31 peptides among this group were of interest to the researchers.

Peptides related to blood proteins or coming from proteins involved in the respiratory system were identified in all the documents characterized, noted the researchers in the study. The experimental data also showed that he probably suffered from inflammatory processes of the respiratory tract and/or on the skin.

A rare disease

These identifications indicated to the team that Dracula indeed “cried tears of blood,” i.e., he suffered from a condition called hemolacria, as reported in earlier studies.

The condition has been described as a very rare entity. Conjunctivitis, capillary hemangioma, conjunctival telangiectasia, trauma, and nasal and paranasal neoplasms may play a role in its cause.

This is the first such study in which the health status of Vlad Dracula the Impaler has been brought to light. The researchers added a note of caution: “It cannot be denied that more medieval people may have touched these documents, but it is also presumable that the most prominent ancient proteins should be related to Prince Vlad the Impaler, who wrote and signed these letters.”

The study was published in the journal Analytical Chemistry.

Study abstract:

The interest of scientists in analyzing items of World Cultural Heritage has been exponentially increasing since the beginning of the new millennium. These studies have grown considerably in tandem with the development and use of sophisticated and sensitive technologies such as high-resolution mass spectrometry (MS) and the non-invasive and non-damaging technique, known under the acronym EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate). Here, we report the results of the MS characterization of the peptides and proteins harvested by the EVA technology applied to three letters written in 1457 and 1475 by the voivode of Wallachia, Vlad III, also known as Vlad the Impaler, or Vlad Dracula. The discrimination of the “original” endogenous peptides from contaminant ones was obtained by monitoring their different levels of deamidation and of other diagenetic chemical modifications. The characterization of the ancient proteins extracted from these documents allowed us to explore the environmental conditions, in the second half of the 15th century, of the Wallachia, a region considered as a meeting point for soldiers, migrants, and travelers that probably carried not only trade goods and cultural traditions but also diseases and epidemics. In addition, the identification of many human peptides and proteins harvested from the letters allowed us to uncover more about Vlad Dracula the Impaler. Particularly, the experimental data show that he probably suffered from inflammatory processes of the respiratory tract and/or of the skin. In addition, proteomics data, although not exhaustive, suggest that, according to some stories, he might also have suffered from a pathological condition called hemolacria, that is, he could shed tears admixed with blood. It is worth noting that more medieval people may have touched these documents, which cannot be denied, but it is also presumable that the most prominent ancient proteins should be related to Prince Vlad the Impaler, who wrote and signed these letters. The data have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange with the identifier ⟨PXD041350⟩.