Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and its epidemiology

Abstract

Since the recognition of BSE in 1986, over 180,000 cattle in the UK have developed the disease and 1-3 million are likely to have been infected with the BSE agent, most of which were slaughtered for human consumption before developing signs of the disease. The origin of the first case of BSE is unknown, but the epidemic was caused by the recycling of processed waste parts of cattle, some of which were infected with the BSE agent, to other cattle in feed. Control measures have resulted in the consistent decline of the epidemic in the UK since 1992. Cattle and feed exported from the UK have seeded smaller epidemics in other European countries, where control measures were applied later. If the control measures now in place to protect public and animal health are well enforced, the epidemic in cattle should be largely under control and any remaining risk to humans through the consumption of beef should be very small.

What’s in a Dog’s Breakfast? Considering the Social, Veterinary and Environmental Implications of Feeding Food Scraps to Pets Using Three Australian Surveys

“…However, the risk of zoonoses is significant, with examples such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy [19]. The BSE epidemic in the UK was caused by the feeding of recycled and processed waste products of cattle, some of which were infected with BSE, to other cattle [20]. The difficulties in responding to BSE involved the complex interrelationships between animal feed and cattle production, slaughter and meat processing, together with the rendering of inedible offal and international trade in animal products [19].…”

“…The difficulties in responding to BSE involved the complex interrelationships between animal feed and cattle production, slaughter and meat processing, together with the rendering of inedible offal and international trade in animal products [19]. A UK ban on feeding ruminant protein to ruminants in 1988 resulted in a delayed decline in new cases by 1992, due to the long incubation period of the disease [20]. It is also illegal in most countries to feed food waste to pigs due to the risk of disease transmission; for example, pig industry experts in Australia considered the risk of spread of infectious diseases from south-east Asia to be mostly related to disposal of food waste [21].…”

Spread and Control of Prion Diseases in the Food and Feed Chains

“…[15] With regard to the pathogenesis of BSE, animal by-products such as meat and bone meal (MBM), which have been used as nutritional supplements in livestock feedstuffs for more than 100 years, are major carriers of the infectious agent PrP Sc . [16,17] Significant changes in the manufacturing processes of feedstuffs that took place in the 1970s, including the introduction of mechanical systems that permitted continuous flow production and solvent extraction of fats, enabled PrP Sc to enter the livestock feed chain. [18,19] The recycling of animal by-products from BSE-infected animals caused a wide spread infection of BSE in cattle, [19] subsequently affecting the food chain through the consumption of the PrP Sc -contaminated meat products.…”

MIĘDZY CZŁOWIEKIEM A BESTIĄ: Animalising Social Life: An introduction

“…Consumer anxieties were further heightened in the UK by a series of food scares during the 1980s and 1990s, such as those generated by and associated with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), Salmonella and E.coli (e.g. Pattison 1998;Franklin 1999;Smith, Bradley 2003). The accumulation of such food-related concerns not only (re)connected people with the animate products on their plates, it also transformed 'private troubles' about food animal production into high-profile 'public issues' (Mills 1959: 8;Benton, Redfearn 1996;Garner 1996;Curry Report 2002).…”