Prevention and Safeguard Measures For Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE).
Abstract
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), commonly referred to as mad cow disease, is a disease that damages the central nervous system and results to death. This disease is caused by abnormal proteins, or prions, and directly kills nervous tissues, thus is directly linked to the spinal cord and brain. The United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Food and Drug Administrations have set safeguards and firewalls to prevent BSE-contaminated beef from entering into the human food supply. Human consumption of BSE- contaminated beef results to variant Creutzfedt-Jakob disease (vCJD), which is also fatal. So far, there are no cures for BSE, or for vCJD, but only treatments to help stabilize the symptoms of the disease as the disease progresses.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), also known as mad cow disease, is a slowly progressive, degenerative, fatal disease that damages the central nervous system of adult cattle. It is universally accepted among the scientific community that the cause of BSE is from infectious forms of prions, which is a type of protein that is found in animals and is a type of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE). The exact cause of BSE is not known. In cattle that have BSE, these abnormal prions initially occur in the small intestines and tonsils, and are found in the brain, spinal cord, and other nervous tissues of animals in later stages of this disease (USFDA/CFSAN, 2005). These abnormal prions trigger chain reactions through all the other proteins in the brain and cause those proteins to change into the abnormal prions, thus damaging the brain and the result is death (Massachusetts Dep...
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Prevention and Safeguard Measures for BSE 7
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In the subsequent essay I will discuss and explain the relative function of the Prion protein. The Prion protein, also known as PrPC, ‘’is a membrane-anchored protein with two N-glycosylation sites and, although it is highly expressed in the nervous tissues, its physiological functions have yet to be well established’’ (Coordination Chemistry Reviews). PrPC/PrP is found in healthy brains in this form, and consists of 250 Amino Acids, yet after a simple misfolding in the secondary structure; this can alienate the PrP and forms PrPsc, which is the abnormal form of the Prion protein. The infectious agent PrPsc causes neuropathological changes in the brain, and instantly places the individual under the category of someone with the prion disease. PrPsc forms insoluble fibres and thus cannot be studied well using Nuclear Mass Resonance (NMR), and it is also more resistant to protease digestion. Furthermore, ‘’ The transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) arise from conversion of the membrane-bound prion protein from PrPC to PrPSc, the latter being the scrapie form. Examples of the TSEs include mad cow disease, chronic wasting disease in deer and elk, scrapie in goats and sheep, and kuru and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans’’ (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2904554/. 2014). The following diagram shows the conversion from PrPc to PrPsc:
Mad Cow Disease, scientifically referred to as (BSE) Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, is a disease that affects those humans who eat the meat from infected cows. Mad Cow Disease is one of several fatal brain diseases called (TSE) Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy. (USDA) There was evidence of a new illness resembling the sheep disease scrapie. It was technically named BSE but quickly acquired the mad cow tag because of the way infected cattle behave. (CNN) In 1997, there was an award given to Stanley Prusiner, for concluding that a distorted protein called a prion was responsible for Mad Cow Disease, noted the long incubation period made it difficult to distinguish (Bryant). Another name for Mad Cow Disease is the new variant Cruetzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD), similar to the Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, which is a deadly brain illness that strikes about one per million per year (USDA) due to genetic or unknown causes while the vCJD is contracted from eating infected cows (USDA). Both CJD and vCJD are so similarly named because of the similar effects from the illness.
Mad cow disease is caused by prions, "weird mutant proteins that are found in brain and spinal tissue"1. Another name for mad cow disease is called bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and the definition is "a progressive neurological disorder of cattle that results from infection by an unusual transmissible agent called a prion"2. It started from what is called a prion protein then it turned into a pathogenic, and then it starts to damaged the brain of a cattle. There's another name for this disease and it's called Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease "a form of progressive dementia characterized by loss of nerve cells and degeneration of nerve cell membranes leading to the production of small holes in the brain. It is rare, degenerative, and invariably fatal"3. This disease happen in human causing lapses in the memory, mood swings similar to depression, lack of interest and social withdrawal3. It is said that this disease has no tr...
TSEs or more commonly prion diseases are a group of invariably fatal neurodegenerative diseases that occur in humans and animals . This disease is caused by a protease –resistant protein (PrPsc) after misfolding of a host-encoded prion protein (PrP). TSEs can exist as genetic, infectious or sporadic forms. The diseases are characterized by dementia, ataxia and neuropathlogically due to loss of specific neurons in the brain. Other clinical features include persistent painful stimuli, dystonia, visual or cerebellar problems and gliosis (1).
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a fatal neuro-degenerative, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) of the family Cervidae (Hamir, et.al., 2006). The family Cervidae includes mule deer, Odocolileus hemionus, white-tailed deer, Odocolileus virginianus, Rocky Mountain elk, Cervus elaphus nelsoni, and moose, Alces alces shirasi, among others (Sigurdon & Aguzzi, 2007). CWD is a prion disease, meaning it is a protein caused infection, that occurs naturally in the deer family (Song & Lawson, 2009). This protein is suspected to be an abnormal isoform (PrPSc) of the naturally occurring host prion protein (PrPC) (Blanchong, et. Al., 2009). Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), mad cow disease, is a similar prion effecting cattle as CWD affects Cervidae. Although, scientists are not sure of transmission route it is suspected that CWD is transmissible and infectious through direct contact with infected individuals or through environmental contamination (Song & Lawson, 2009). Tests have been performed showing susceptibility of altered mice to oral transmission, mimicking the suspected route of entry, and the incubation appears slower but lasts longer with oral infection (Trifilo, et.al., 2007). The approximate time from the initial infection to death is three years.
Normally, cows in Northern Europe in places such as Denmark live normal lives simply grazing on grass, and existing. However, there have been recent changes that have disrupted this normal activity. Generally the bluetongue virus (spread by Culicoides imicola, a biting midge) has been confined to Southern Europe and other places around the Mediterranean. But with the increase in temperature throughout the area, the midge has been allowed to migrate northward. This new pest is a nuisance and causes lots of difficulties to farmers in the area. When a cow contracts this disease, they usually also receive oral ulcers, salivation, stiffness, fever and eventually the inevitable- death (Merck Veterinary Manual NP). Because of the increase in temperature, midges have spread around the globe infecting livestock and creating terrible trouble for many farmers.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy or Mad Cow Disease (BSE), degenerative brain disorder of cattle. Symptoms in cows include loss of coordination and a typical staggering gait. Affected animals also show signs of senility, for example, lack of interest in their surroundings, the abandonment of routine habits, disinterest in feed and water, or unpredictable behavior. Affected cattle show symptoms when they are three to ten years old.
Albert Sabin, the developer of the polio vaccine once said, “Without animal research, polio would still be claiming thousands of lives each year.” Polio is a deadly disease caused by a virus that spreads from person to person. This infectious disease renders the brain and spinal cord helpless while also ensuring a permanent case of paralysis to the victim. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “…13,000 to 20,000 para-lytic cases were reported annually,” before the 18th century. After the introduction of the polio vaccine, “…a total of 2,525 paralytic cases were reported, compared with 61 in 1965.” This dramatic decrease in the prominence of the polio disease can only be attributed to the success of animal testing. Animal experimentation is used in the research of genetics, drug testing, biology, toxicity testing, cosmetic testing, and many other fields. Despite all of its beneficial traits, animal testing has been wildly controversial over the past decades because of its perceived unethical treatment towards animals. Although animal testing may be deemed unethical by many, it is a form of medical testing that has not only saved lives but has also greatly revolutionized the medical world.
If you had to choose between having Mad Cow Disease or becoming the top scientist in your field, which would you choose? The answer is obvious. Most realize that Mad Cow Disease, i.e. Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, is a fatal disease that has been present among cattle populations in Europe over the past couple decades. In BSE, brain cells begin to die, forming sponge-like holes in the cow’s brain tissue. Evidence shows that consumption of infected cattle could correspond with the contraction of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), a similar disease in humans. Although few people have been diagnosed with CJD worldwide, they remain fearful of showing symptoms of CJD; commonly resulting in death within a year. For this reason, many Americans panicked when becoming aware that the first case of BSE was discovered in the United States in December of 2003. Unfortunately, the media is quick to show infected cows, distempered and shaking in their stalls, without giving sufficient information of the disease’s origin or the preventative measures being taken to halt its spreading. Before consumers restrict beef intake from their diets they should consider their risks. In America, chances of developing BSE is far slimmer than becoming infected with other food-borne illnesses. Although many Americans were recently startled by a reported case of Mad Cow Disease in the United States, they are assured protection from infection by: consumption of selected meats, closely guarded packaging plants, and regulation in beef imports.
Mad cow disease, also knows as BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) is an transferable disease which slowly attacks the brain and nervous system of cattle. There isn’t any cure for the disease. The first case of BSE in Canada was a cow that had been imported from the United Kingdom in 1987 at the age of six months. The animal was destroyed upon the discovery of the disease and the Canadian government banned imports from the United Kingdom. This report relates to unit 4 in terms of the economic and industrial overview of the disease in Canada. This report is on the second discovery of mad cow disease in Canada and how it affected Canada economy and Alberta’s beef industry.
Tirrel, Meg. "FDA Delays Food Safety Regulations." Claim Journal. N.p., 20 Dec 2013. Web. 23 Jan 2014.
Mad Cow Disease, also known as BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy), is a slowly progressive, fatal neurological disorder in cattle that results from infection by a prion. Research indicates that the first probable infection of BSE in cows occurred during the 1970's. BSE possibly originated as a result of feeding cattle meat-and-bone meal that contained BSE-infected products from a spontaneously occurring case of BSE. Evidence suggests that the outbreak spread throughout the United Kingdom cattle industry by feeding prion-infected, bovine meat-and-bone meal to the young calves (Mad Cow Disease Facts). There was strong laboratory evidence between the BSE outbreak in cattle and a human prion disease called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) that was first reported in the United Kingdom (UK) in 1996. The disease is caused by eating beef products contaminated with central nervous system tissue from cattle infected with Mad Cow Disease. It can affect all age groups and is very hard to diagnose until it has nearly run its course. VCJD is fatal, usually within 13 months of the onset of symptoms (The Basics of Mad Cow Disease). The impact Mad Cow Disease and vCJD had in the United Kingdom caused fear worldwide and resulted in major changes to be implemented in the cattle industry.
Administration, U.S. Food and Drug. Animal and Veterinary. 02 Febuary 2014. Web. 17 Febuary 2014.
Most American beef is raised on feedlots, to provide a lot of beef in a short period of time. These feedlots are crowded, which can cause the corn-fed cows to breed diseases that could be potentially harmful to the consumers. Feedlot owners have to give cows antibiotics to try to prevent the spread of diseases from animal to animal. Yet, sometimes these antibiotics are often unhelpful, and, therefore, it is possible for the number of these diseases cross over into humans. Bacteria such as Salmonella and others can cause infections in cattle and calves in turn affecting humans, if tainted meat from the
Cows are naturally very gentle and calm creatures. These smart and sweet natured animals have been known to go to great lengths to escape slaughterhouses. More than forty-one million of these sensitive animals suffer and die a painful death each year in the United States. When cows are still very young they are burned with hot irons, there testicles are torn or cut off, all without painkillers. Most beef cattle are born in one state, live in another, and are slaughtered in another. The cows who survive the gruesome transportation process are shot in the head with a bolt gun, hung upside down by there legs, and taken onto the killing floor where there throats