This post highlights an interesting article discussing the possible cow-human
transmission of BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy, "mad cow disease"),
in light of the emergence of a new strain of CJD (Creutzfeld-Jakob disease)
in Britain, that strikes people under 40.

Reference:

"Bovine spongiform encephalopathy and a new variant of Creutzfeld-Jakob
 disease",  by Leon G. Epstein, M.D., and Paul Brown, M.D.; in the
 journal: "Neurology" (March 1997), vol. 48, pgs. 569-571.

A few interesting quotes from the article:

"These studies suggest that a substantial species barrier exists between
cattle and humans as regards the transmission of BSE. It needs to be kept in
mind, however, that this barrier is unlikely to be an absolute factor....

The infectivity of prion diseases is concentrated predominantly in the neural
tissue and less so in lymphoreticular tissue. Infectivity is not found in
tissues such as skeletal muscle  or in body fluids such as blood or milk.
These observations argue against the consumption of beef, per se, as a
likely source of infection, as compared with the consumption of, or exposure
to, BSE-infected nervous tissue in other food or non-food products...

It is likely that the answer to the question of potential transmission of
BSE to the human population will come only with continued surveillance....

Additional cases will undoubtedly be identified over the next several years.
Predictions of a huge epidemic of such cases are probably not justified by
the current data."

Those interested in BSE/CJD will find the article, and its references,
of likely interest.

Regards,
Tom Billings
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