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Published Date: 2003-10-08 23:50:00
Subject: PRO/AH> BSE - Japan (05): atypical
Archive Number: 20031008.2526

BSE - JAPAN (05): ATYPICAL
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[1]
Date: Wed, 8 Oct 2003
From: Terry S. Singeltary Sr. <flounder@wt.net> [edited]

[The statement in the news item cited in the said posting, that "the 8th
case of the brain-wasting illness found in Japan is believed to be the
world's youngest carrier of the disease"], is wrong.

There have been several cases of clinical BSE in British cattle under 30
months, and it is therefore hardly possible to think that cattle under 30
months have virtually no risk of having BSE.

In 1988 the youngest case was 24, the 2nd youngest 27 months old.
In 1989 the youngest case was 21 and other 4 cases only 24 months old.
In 1990 there were 2 cases only 24 and one only 26 months old.
In 1991 the youngest case was 24 and other 3 cases were only 26 months old.
In 1992 the youngest case was 20 (!), the 2nd youngest 26 months old.
In 1993 there was a 29-month-old case.
In 1995 a 24-month-old case.
In 1996 one British BSE case was 29 months old.

See: <http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/bse/bse-statistics/bse/yng-old.html>.

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[2]
Date: Wed, 8 Oct 2003
From: Laurence Gleeson <Laurence.Gleeson@csiro>

I expect that ProMED will continue to monitor this situation, as the
statement that "the abnormal prions found in the bull were of a different
type from those of any of the mad cow infection cases reported worldwide so
far" is very thought-provoking.

Since this animal was presumably normal and detected by routine
post-slaughter screening, it then might be worth clarifying whether the
amount of material [from the animal] now available for further studies
[might be] limited. The statement and the case have such profound
implications that it would seem almost incumbent on the authorities to
provide material to an international reference laboratory for confirmation
and mouse susceptibility/pathology studies.

Further enquiries of the Japanese authorities would be most helpful to all
of us with a keen interest in the prevention and control of this disease.

--
Laurence J Gleeson
Principal Research Scientist
CSIRO Livestock Industries
Australian Animal Health Laboratory
<Laurence.Gleeson@csiro>

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[3]
Date: Wed, 8 Oct 2003
From: Timothy A Snider/vpb/Cvm <tsnider@cvm.okstate.edu>

A couple of quick questions for the moderator or the readership of ProMED-
mail as a whole:

1. If one had a spontaneous BSE case (something analogous to GSS or FFI in
humans), how would one know it?

2. What features of current diagnostic modalities in BSE (whether it be
immunohistochemistry, western blotting, etc.) define the prion as exogenous
or infectious instead of (hypothetically) spontaneous?

These questions are not entirely germane to the currently discussed
Japanese case, but I believe they are relevant on a larger scale.

--
Timothy A. Snider, DVM
Lecturer, Anatomic Pathology
250 McElroy Hall
College of Veterinary Medicine
Oklahoma State University
Stillwater, OK 74078
<tsnider@okstate.edu>

******
[4]
Date: Wed, 8 Oct 2003
From: ProMED-mail <promed@promedmail.org>
Source: The Financial Times, 8 Oct 2003 [edited]
<http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/

StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1059480417800>

Japan finds possible new type of mad cow disease
------------------------------------------------
Japanese scientists launched an investigation yesterday into a possible new
strain of BSE, or "mad cow disease", after a bullock was discovered to have
contracted the fatal illness. Scientists as well as experts on farming and
food met last night to investigate the case and discuss measures to curb
the spread of the disease. A confirmed new strain of mad cow disease would
be a setback for Japan's cattle and beef industries, which have struggled
to win public confidence after the first case was discovered in Japan 2
years ago.

The case differs from previous incidents of bovine spongiform
encephalopathy because tests on the animal showed that prions, the
self-replicating protein that cause the disease, were arranged in different
patterns from past cases.The bullock was also only 23 months old, making it
the 2nd-youngest [no, 3rd -- see [1] above. - Mod.JW] animal to have
contracted the disease. Also, while initial tests concluded that the animal
had fallen victim to BSE, secondary tests all proved negative. The bullock
was born one month after Japan banned the use of meat-and-bone meal, which is
regarded as the main route of infection.

It is Japan's 8th recorded case of BSE. Chikara Sakaguchi, health minister,
said: "The commonly held view is that young [cattle] are not infected [with
BSE] but this has proved otherwise. We want to examine whether our current
screening system can catch this new type of BSE."

The case is being followed in other countries, notably Britain where the
disease first appeared. The UK ministry of agriculture said: "We are
watching this with interest but need more information before commenting."

In a recent similar case in Britain involving sheep, scientists are still
trying to explain unusual prions that were discovered. BSE was first
diagnosed in Britain in 1986 and has since been discovered in several
European countries. Japan became the first country outside Europe to have
the disease, which has now also been discovered in Canada. The discovery of
BSE in a 23-month-old animal could cause widespread concern. In the UK,
tests are performed only on animals 24 months or older. However, the
removal from the food chain of high-risk body material such as brains and
nerve tissue is believed to have cut most of the risk of the infection
being passed on.

This latest case of BSE in Japan is likely to bolster Tokyo's contention
that all Canadian cattle should be tested for BSE before Japan resumes beef
imports from Canada. It could also have repercussions in countries where
BSE has recently been found, such as Canada, as well as in countries such
as the UK, where the disease is thought to be under control. About 150
people worldwide have died from variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which is
linked to BSE.

[Byline: Bayan Rahman in Tokyo and John Mason in London]

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