NR AJGL
AU Patterson,W.J.; Dealler,S.F.
TI Bovine spongiform encephalopathy and the public health
QU Journal of Public Health Medicine 1995 Sep; 17(3): 261-8
PT journal article; review; review, tutorial
AB Symptomatic cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in British cattle now total more than 146 000. As BSE is one of a group of transmissible and fatal spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) affecting both animals and humans this has raised concern regarding possible risks to human health. The infective agent in TSEs, thought to be an altered host glycoprotein called the prion, has not been clearly described. Nor have potential sources and routes of infection. There are no reliable early diagnostic tests of infection, incubation periods are prolonged (possibly up to 30 years in humans) and the pathological process which leads to a rapidly progressive and fatal encephalopathy has yet to be explained. It is not yet known if the BSE agent can cross the human species barrier. Originally, cattle were thought to be an end-host for the BSE agent, However, it has now been transmitted experimentally to sheep, goats, pigs, mice, mink and the marmoset monkey. In addition, epidemiological investigation has indicated an association between BSE and recently described spongiform encephalopathy in other animals including the domestic cat. Given the importance of beef in the human diet, it is essential that control measures to protect health are rigorous, comprehensive and objective. In this respect there are four factors which are important in assessing possible risks. These are the likely magnitude of the species barrier between cattle and humans, the dose (single or cumulative) of prion particles, the method of exposure (oral or subcutaneous) and the likely incubation period before symptomatic disease. To assist knowledge and understanding in these areas we recommend the wider involvement of public health professionals in the existing nationally co-ordinated multi-agency research programme. We also recommend further studies into the oral transmissibility of the BSE agent to primates, an acceleration of the search for early diagnostic tools and treatments for established prion infection, and enhanced surveillance of neurological disease in the human population.
ZR 70
MH Animal; Cattle; *Encephalopathy, Bovine Spongiform/diagnosis/epidemiology/prevention &; control/transmission; Great Britain/epidemiology; Human; Meat/virology; Population Surveillance; *Public Health; Risk Factors
AD North Yorkshire Health Authority, Clifton Moor, York.
SP englisch
PO England