BSE, aka mad cow disease
BSE, also known as mad cow disease, stands for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy. This cattle disease also causes a variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a deadly human brain disease. BSE resulted in disaster for cattle farmers in the United Kingdom: more than 180,000 cattle infected with BSE had to be destroyed.
Last case of BSE in the Netherlands in 2011
BSE is an infectious disease belonging to the group of "transmissible spongiform encephalopathies" (TSEs) or prion diseases. Since 1987, a total of 88 cattle from the Netherlands have been diagnosed with a BSE infection. Since the last case, in September 2011, no new cases have been reported in the Netherlands.
Sporadic cases in Europe
in October 2018, a case of BSE was discovered on a farm in Scotland. This discovery is not unique. For example, two cases have been reported on the continent of Europe in 2016 and four in 2017.
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
In humans, BSE causes a variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, which has been diagnosed in three patients in the Netherlands (until 2011), all of whom died (in 2005, 2006 and 2009). Worldwide more than 220 patients have been diagnosed with this variant of CJD.
Publications
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Inactivation of H-type and L-type bovine spongiform encephalopathy following recommended autoclave decontamination procedures
Transboundary and Emerging Diseases (2020). - ISSN 1865-1674 -
Characterization of goat prions demonstrates geographical variation of scrapie strains in Europe and reveals the composite nature of prion strains
Scientific Reports 10 (2020)1. - ISSN 2045-2322 -
Four types of scrapie in goats differentiated from each other and bovine spongiform encephalopathy by biochemical methods
Veterinary Research 50 (2019). - ISSN 0928-4249 -
Protecting effect of PrP codons M142 and K222 in goats orally challenged with bovine spongiform encephalopathy prions
Veterinary Research 48 (2017)1. - ISSN 0928-4249 -
EU-approved rapid tests might underestimate bovine spongiform encephalopathy infection in goats
Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation 29 (2017)2. - ISSN 1040-6387 - p. 232 - 236. -
Genetic, histochemical and biochemical studies on goat TSE cases from Cyprus
Veterinary Research 47 (2016). - ISSN 0928-4249 - 14 p. -
Prion type-dependent deposition of PRNP allelic products in heterozygous sheep
Journal of Virology 90 (2016)2. - ISSN 0022-538X - p. 805 - 812. -
Behoud TSE-ongevoelige geiten (TSE=overdraagbare sponsvormige hersenaandoening zoals scrapie, atypische scrapie, of BSE)
Zeldzaam huisdier 2015 (2015). - ISSN 0929-905X -
Effect of Q211 and K222 PRNP polymorphic variants in the susceptibility of goats to oral infections with Goat Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
The Journal of Infectious Diseases 212 (2015)4. - ISSN 0022-1899 - p. 664 - 672. -
Sheep prions with molecular properties intermediate between classical scrapie, BSE and CH1641-scrapie
Prion 8 (2014)4. - ISSN 1933-6896 - p. 296 - 305.