Commentary on Charlier et al. article "Paleoproteomics reveals chromoblastomycosis as possible cause of King of France Louis XIV's death (1715)".

This article critically examines the recent hypothesis that Louis XIV died of chromoblastomycosis following the paleoproteomic detection of Cyphellophora europaea in his embalmed heart. Although the analytical approach is technically remarkable, its clinical interpretation remains uncertain. The king's terminal course, marked by severe lower-limb pain followed by death within approximately 20 days, together with the autopsy description of rapidly progressive and extensive gangrene involving soft tissues and associated with abdominal distension, is far more suggestive of an acute necrotizing septic process than of a chronic melanized fungal infection. Chromoblastomycosis is classically a slowly progressive disease limited to the skin and subcutaneous tissues, with dissemination being uncommon. By contrast, an acute bacterial necrotizing infection (Clostridium Perfringens) complicating a diabetic foot lesion, possibly including clostridial myonecrosis, provides a far more coherent explanation of the historical evidence. The article also emphasizes the methodological limitations inherent to paleoproteomic studies of ancient relics, including selective biomolecular preservation, contamination, embalming-related alterations, postmortem handling, and the uncertain differential survival of microbial signals over time. In such a context, fungal detection cannot be equated with causal demonstration. In conclusion, while the identification of Cyphellophora is worthy of report, it should not lead to the premature dismissal of the clinically more plausible hypothesis of acute gangrenous bacterial sepsis.