Breaking news on cjd vcjd mad cow disease
FDA Strengthens BSE Safeguards In Animal Feed published
Thu, 24 Apr 2008 03:00:00 PDT
In a move to reduce the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), also known as "mad cow disease", and protect the health of humans and animals, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has banned certain high risk animal parts from all animal feed, including pet food. The rule was issued yesterday, 23rd April, and will come into force in 12 months to give the industry time to put it into practice.
VCJD Kills Two People In Spain published
Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:00:00 PDT
Two people have died of vCJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease), the human form of mad cow disease, in Castilla-Leon, central Spain. One person (51) died three months ago while the other one (26) died last week, say authorities. According to Spain's Health Department, these were not the first vCJD deaths in the country.
New Insights Into The Diversity Of Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease Agents published
Sun, 23 Mar 2008 00:00:00 PDT
Researchers from the United Kingdom and France have identified four separate biochemical subgroups in a selection of cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The study, published March 14th in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens, suggests that these subgroups could represent distinct prion strains in what is the most common human prion disease.
Four Separate Biochemical Subgroups In A Selection Of Cases Of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Identified published
Tue, 18 Mar 2008 01:00:00 PDT
UK and French researchers have identified four separate biochemical subgroups in a selection of cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The study, published March 14th in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens, suggests that these subgroups could represent distinct prionstrains in what is the most common human prion disease.
News From The American Chemical Society Feb. 27, 2008 published
Tue, 04 Mar 2008 06:00:00 PDT
A nano-sensor for better detection of Mad Cow Disease agentIn an advance in food safety, researchers in New York are reporting development of a nano-sized sensor that detects record low levels of the deadly prion proteins that cause Mad Cow Disease and other so-called prion diseases.
Food Safety Attorney, Calls For CDC Long-Term Study Of Nation's School Children And Congressional Hearings On Safety Of United States Beef Supply published
Tue, 19 Feb 2008 02:00:00 PDT
The largest recall of beef in U.S. history - over 143 million pounds - and the solid evidence that USDA has failed to enforce its own ban against downer cattle being used in the nation's school lunch program, demand immediate action by Congress says food safety attorney William D. Marler.
French Medics Sued Over CJD Deaths published
Thu, 07 Feb 2008 11:00:00 PDT
Seven former medical officials are on trial in France following a 17 year investigation into over 100 deaths from Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) of young patients treated with contaminated growth hormones.The defendants, retired doctors and pharmacists in their 70s and 80s, are accused of manslaughter, aggravated deception and causing unintentional injury, said Reuters news agency.
New vCJD Case Raises Fear Of Mad Cow Disease Resurge In The UK published
Thu, 03 Jan 2008 03:00:00 PDT
Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) has killed a 39 year old woman in the UK and triggered renewed fears that a new surge of mad cow disease is on the way. However, experts are saying there is no need to panic and there is no evidence of a new wave of BSE or mad cow disease.
11th Case Of Mad Cow Disease Confirmed In Canada published
Wed, 19 Dec 2007 09:00:00 PDT
An animal which was born before new feed regulations came into force has been confirmed to be infected with mad-cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE), says the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). The agency says the 11-year-old cow from Alberta had not entered the human food or animal feed systems, and the carcass in under CFIA control.
Scripps Scientists Develop New Tests That Identify Lethal Prion Strains Quickly And Accurately published
Wed, 05 Dec 2007 04:00:00 PDT
One of the new in vitro tests, called the Standard Scrapie Cell Assay, measures prion infectivity levels in a highly accurate and extremely rapid way, producing results in less than two weeks. The second test, called the Cell Panel Assay, allows researchers to quickly distinguish between several prion strains in various cells lines.
Levels Of Prion Protein In Brain May Not Be Reliable Marker For Disease published
Mon, 03 Dec 2007 03:00:00 PDT
Rapid diagnostic testing used to check for the presence of prion diseases such as "mad cow disease" might fail to identify some highly infectious samples, researchers have found. Currently, scanning beef or other meat products for possible prion infection involves sampling brain tissue from the animal for abnormally folded prion protein, also called PrP; this form of PrP, which is sticky and hard to degrade, is believed to be the infectious agent behind prion diseases.
National CJD Surveillance Unit Publishes 15th Annual Report For 2006, UK published
Mon, 03 Dec 2007 01:00:00 PDT
The Fifteenth Annual Report of the National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit was published recently. The report looks back over the period from May 1990 (when the Unit was set up) to 31 December 2006. The report outlines the Unit's work in the clinical surveillance of variant (vCJD), sporadic and iatrogenic CJD.
Prion Fingerprints Detected With Glowing Molecule published
Sun, 25 Nov 2007 00:00:00 PDT
An effective and sensitive new method for detecting and characterizing prions, the infectious compounds behind diseases like mad cow disease, is now being launched by researchers at Linkoping University in Sweden, among other institutions. Mad cow disease (BSE), which has caused the death of more than 200,000 cattle and 165 people in the U.K., has now abated. But other prion disorders are on the rise, and there is concern that new strains will infect humans.
Prion Infectivity Spread Through Lymph Nodes Into Nervous System published
Wed, 26 Sep 2007 03:00:00 PDT
Lymph nodes can be crucial for spreading low doses of infective prion agents -- the pathogens responsible for conditions such as scrapie and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease -- into the nervous system, according to new research published in the online open access journal BMC Veterinary Research.
$1.5 Million 'New Innovator' Grant From NIH For Fruit-Fly Studies Of Prion Proteins published
Thu, 20 Sep 2007 05:00:00 PDT
The National Institutes of Health has selected University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) Assistant Professor of Neurology Pedro Fernandez-Funez to receive a five-year, $1.5 million NIH Director's New Innovator Award.NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni officially announced the 29 recipients of the grants, designed to foster young biomedical researchers with bold new ideas, at a symposium at NIH headquarters yesterday, Sept. 19.
Prions And Retroviruses - An Unholy Alliance? - Expression Of Endogenous Retroviruses Is Changed After Prion Infection published
Sun, 09 Sep 2007 01:00:00 PDT
In work originating from the Bavarian Research Cooperation Prions (FORPRION), which ended in 2007, a team led by the scientist Prof. Dr. Christine Leib-Mösch has been able to show that prion proteins may activate endogenous retroviruses in infected brain cells.
Discovery Of New Prion Protein May Offer Insight Into Mad Cow Disease published
Sun, 19 Aug 2007 16:00:00 PDT
Scientists have discovered a new protein that may offer fresh insights into brain function in mad cow disease. "Our team has defined a second prion protein called 'Shadoo', that exists in addition to the well-known prion protein called 'PrP' " said Professor David Westaway, director of the Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases at the University of Alberta.
Breakthrough In Prion Amplification Brings Hope Of Blood Test For Variant CJD published
Fri, 06 Jul 2007 06:00:00 PDT
Researchers have shown that a recently developed laboratory method to amplify prions (Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification) can be applied to variant CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease). The work was carried out by scientists at the National CJD Surveillance Unit at the University of Edinburgh, the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service, Neuropathogenesis Unit and CSL Behring. It is published this month in the Journal of Pathology.The team, led by Dr.
Monthly Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease Statistics, UK published
Wed, 06 Jun 2007 01:00:00 PDT
The Department of Health is today issuing the latest information about the numbers of known cases of Creutzfeldt Jakob disease. This includes cases of variant Creutzfeldt Jakob disease (vCJD) - the form of the disease thought to be linked to BSE.
Prion's Infectious Secret Identified By Scientists published
Tue, 15 May 2007 18:00:00 PDT
Small regions within prion proteins regulate their ability to cross species barriersResearchers have known for decades that certain neurodegenerative diseases, such as mad cow disease or its human equivalent, Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease, result from a kind of infectious protein called a prion.
BSE Case Confirmed In British Columbia, Canada published
Wed, 09 May 2007 12:00:00 PDT
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has confirmed the diagnosis of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a mature dairy cow from British Columbia. The animal's carcass is under CFIA control, and no part of it entered the human food or animal feed systems.
Prions Block Cell Recycling System To Cause Disease published
Fri, 04 May 2007 12:00:00 PDT
The rogue prion proteins responsible for diseases like BSE and vCJD can destroy brain cells by blocking the protein recycling process that helps keep cells healthy.
Chronic Wasting Disease Transmissible Among Rodents published
Tue, 01 May 2007 10:00:00 PDT
For the first time, a new study demonstrates that certain rodents can be directly infected with CWD and therefore serve as animal models for further study of the disease. The researchers report their findings in the Journal of Virology.Chronic wasting disease (CWD), also known as mad cow disease in cattle and Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease in humans, is a transmissible prion disease most commonly found in deer and elk.
Toward Safer Disposal Of Animals Infected With Mad Cow And Other Prion Diseases published
Fri, 23 Mar 2007 13:00:00 PDT
Burying prion-infected carcasses of cattle, deer and other animals in lime may actually enhance the spread of those infectious proteins through soil, a new study suggests. Placing quicklime on carcasses once was thought to be the best way to foster quick decay of bodies and to prevent the spread of disease. The study is scheduled for the April 15 issue of ACS' Environmental Science & Technology, a semi-monthly journal.In the study, Joel A.
)
|
|
