Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE),caused by an infectious prion, emerged in the 1980s in Europe as a new disease in cattle and, since then, several actions are being taken for its prevention and control. Restricting the feeding of ruminants with animal by-products and the removal and destruction of specific risk materials (SRM) for the condition of carcasses in slaughterhouses have been proven effective to control the disease, in addition to the reduction of human exposure to the agent, as this is an important zoonosis. However, in 2004 the first atypical cases of BSE were diagnosed, in which the causative agents showed different molecular weights in Western blot (WB), compared to the classical form of the agent. In addition to the molecular differences, clinical presentations proved to be differentiated in atypical forms, affecting mainly cattle older than eight years. Because it is a new form of the disease, many studies are being conducted to elucidate the pathogenesis, epidemiology and zoonotic potential of atypical BSE. The aim of this study was to review the main aspects of atypical BSE emphasizing its etiology, epidemiology, clinical signs, diagnosis and control and prevention measures. KEYWORDS: RESUMO:A encefalopatia espongiforme bovina (EEB), causada por um príon infectante, surgiu na década de 1980 na Europa como uma nova doença nos rebanhos bovinos e, desde então, estão sendo tomadas várias ações para sua prevenção e controle. A restrição da alimentação de ruminantes com subprodutos de origem animal e a remoção e destruição dos materiais de risco específico para a doença das carcaças em frigoríficos se mostraram efetivas medidas para o controle da doença, além de reduzirem a exposição humana ao agente, pois se trata de uma importante zoonose. No entanto, em 2004 os primeiros casos atípicos de EEB foram diagnosticados, nos quais os agentes causais apresentavam alterações de peso molecular na prova de Western blot, em relação ao agente da forma clássica. Além das diferenças moleculares dos agentes, as apresentações clínicas mostraram-se diferenciadas nas formas atípicas, acometendo principalmente bovinos com idade superior a oito anos. Por se tratar de uma nova forma da doença, muitos estudos estão sendo conduzidos buscando elucidar a patogenia, epidemiologia e seu potencial zoonótico. Objetivou-se neste estudo revisar os principais aspectos relacionados às EEB atípicas enfatizando sua etiologia, epidemiologia, sinais clínicos, diagnóstico e medidas de controle.

The epidemiology of salmonellosis in poultry is complex, which makes it difficult to identify the origin and spread of this disease in poultry farms. The aims of this study were to characterize the spatial distribution of Salmonella enterica in epidemiological units in Paraná, Brazil; and to investigate correlations between this microorganism and associated factors. Among the epidemiological units, 78 of 243 (32.10%) were positive. Spatially, the northwestern and western regions had higher concentrations of positive cases than the other regions. In bivariate analyses, the presence of other animal species in the epidemiological unit (prevalence ratio, PR = 0.64; 95% confidence interval, CI = 0.43-0.95; p = 0.022) and proximity to establishments at risk (PR = 0.51; 95% CI = 0.32-0.81; p = 0.001) did not influence positivity, but the average population per poultry shed (between 30,501 and 32,500; PR = 2.57; 95% CI = 1.72-3.83; p = 0.001) was associated with Salmonella positivity. Multiple logistic regression demonstrated that the average population per poultry shed, presence of surrounding risk-posing establishments and presence of surrounding poultry sheds produced a significant multiple model for S. enterica. The results indicated that the presence of S. enterica may be related to higher density broiler in poultry sheds, presence of surrounding poultry sheds, proximity between positive and negative epidemiological units and altitude of the municipality. The information obtained showed that some factors were related to positivity for this microorganism and emphasizes the importance of serotyping to obtain other epidemiological data.