Mad Cow Disease Facts

The mad cow disease is also referred to as Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). It was officially recognized as an entity or a disease, in 1986. It is speculated that as at least 400,000 cattle infected with the BSE entered the human food chain, since 1980. In cattle, the incubation period is 4-5 years. The disease causes degeneration of the neurons present in the brain and spinal cords of the cattle. The brains of the affected cattle appear spongy and filled of holes, due to the structural change induced by this disease. It is said that the disease is caused by protein supplements, in the form of infected meat and bone from the diseased animals, added to the animal feed of herbivorous animals. This disease had a crippling effect on the beef industry, resulting in the ban on the import of beef and considerable loss to the beef producers and consumers. The humans too, can contract it by eating the infected meat.

Common Symptoms in Cattle

The cattle that are affected by the disease, find control and coordination of muscles difficult. This leads to difficulty in standing and walking. As the disease progresses, the movements of infected cattle, becomes sluggish. Even though, the diseased animal continues to eat normally, it starts losing weight. A significant decrease in milk production of the affected cattle can also be noticed. It induces change in the behavior and attitude of the affected cattle.

Common Symptoms in Humans

The disease in humans is referred to as Creutzfeldt - Jakob disease (CJD). The symptoms are anxiety, insomnia and memory loss. All these symptoms may affect the individuals normal life. The affected person may, also exhibit behavior disorder which may culminate and cause fatigue and in the extreme cases, even death. It causes slow dementia, especially, in people who are 50-70 years old. In humans, the disease may take as long as 40 years to show its symptoms. A variant version of Creutzfeldt - Jakob disease (vCJD) harms young individuals. It (vCJD) is a brain-wasting disease, but has no connection to the BSE.

Facts about the Mad Cow Disease

The knowledge make us aware of the ground realities about the disease and the efforts put in by the government and the researchers to reduce its threat to human life. The following are some interesting facts about the disease:

• The first case of the mad cow disease was first discovered in February, 1985 in the Great Britain.
• It is not caused by an invasive microorganism, but because of a mutated protein, prion. This protein affects the nervous system of a mammal and results in deterioration of brain tissue.
• The condition is a type of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (TSE). It can arise in mammals carrying a mutant prion allele, that is responsible for expressing prions that, somehow acquire the disease-causing shape.
• It can spread when healthy animals ingest tainted tissues from other animals carrying this disease.
• In this disease, the consumed mutated prion cause deformation of cellular prion proteins, present in the brain cells. This leads to a chain of reaction in which normal prion protein is deformed. The deformed prion protein comes together to form a plaque fiber in the brain
• A change in British law, permitting the sterilization of the meat and bone to be added to the cattle feed, at a lower temperature also contributed to the spread of the disease
• Mad cow disease spreads in humans, when one consumes nerve tissue from the spine or brain of a deceased cow.
• It is estimated that the chances of contracting the Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) is only one person per million.
• Since 1986, after the first reported case, at least 200 people have lost their lives to the CJD
• In the United States, there is no report of the Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) affecting humans.
• 3 cases of the disease, in cattle, were reported in the United States.
• The total number of the contraction in cattle, is 188,506. Of these cases, 183,000 in all are from the United Kingdom.

It is quite normal to be worried about the risk posed by this. However, it must be noted that, there are no cases of the mad cow disease in Australia and New Zealand. The reason behind this is that the cattle in these countries feed on grass. Their feed is not supplemented with proteins like in Europe. In the aftermath, most of the countries have come up with stricter laws regarding what goes into the animal feed. The calamities such as mad cow disease can be successfully averted by following these laws.