Commonly known as “mad cow disease,” BSE is a slowly progressive, incurable disease affecting the central nervous system of cattle, first diagnosed in the United Kingdom in 1986. BSE belongs to a family of diseases known as the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). Consumption by cattle of animal feed containing TSE-contaminated ruminant protein has been cited as one possible means of transmission. Scientific evidence supports a causal relationship between BSE outbreaks in Europe and more than 120 recent European cases of a human TSE, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD). TSE animal diseases are found in the United States, including scrapie in sheep and goats and chronic wasting disease in deer and elk. Since 1989, USDA has prohibited the importation of live ruminants from countries where BSE is known to exist in native cattle. In 1997, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) prohibited the use of most mammalian protein in ruminant feeds.
One of a group of diseases that cause dementia in many animals. See our more detailed pages on the diseases of livestock.
A disease of cattle, related to scrapie of sheep, also known as “mad cow disease.†It is hypothesized to be caused by a prion, or small protein, which alters the structure of a normal brain protein, resulting in destruction of brain neural tissue.
An infectious degenerative brain disease occurring in cattle. Also called mad cow disease.
a degenerative brain disorder affecting cattle, one of the family of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. A number of scientific theories have been advanced regarding BSE's origins, including the contamination of cattle feed with infective agents derived from sheep carcasses, but precise causes are unknown
(BSE) a.k.a. mad cow disease. See proteinaceous infectious particle.
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, is also known as "mad cow disease." It is a rare, chronic degenerative disease affecting the brain and central nervous system of cattle. Cattle with BSE lose their coordination, develop abnormal posture and experience changes in behavior. Clinical symptoms take 4-5 years to develop, followed by death in a period of several weeks to months unless the affected animal is destroyed sooner.
Commonly known as "mad cow disease," BSE is a slowly progressive, incurable disease affecting the central nervous system of cattle, first diagnosed in Britain in 1986. Consumption by cattle of BSE-contaminated ruminant proteins in animal feed has been cited as one possible means of transmission. Scientists have confirmed a link between BSE in cattle and several dozen recent European cases of a human variant of BSE, Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease. More than 77,000 cattle suspected of having been exposed to the disease have been slaughtered in Great Britain, and a ban on ruminant protein-containing feeds was imposed in 1988. To date, no BSE has been found in U.S. cattle, although other BSE-like animal diseases are found in the United States, including scrapie in sheep and goats. USDA banned the importation of live cattle from Great Britain in 1989, and imposed a partial ban on using ruminant protein in animal feed in 1997.
(a.k.a. Mad Cow Disease) a degenerative disease of brain tissue ("encephalopathy"). BSE is caused by prions and results in the deposition of amyloid tissue thatcauses a breakdown of brain tissue leaving the infected brain with a "spongy" ("spongiform") appearance.
A disease of cattle (often called 'mad cow disease') caused by an agent that is neither a bacterium or a virus. First recognized in 1986 it has a long incubation period.
A form of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that affects cattle.
Also known as "Mad Cow Disease." According to the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, BSE is a degenerative neurological disease caused by an aberrant protein called a prion. It is in the family of diseases - all caused by prions - referred to as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, or TSEs. TSEs include scrapie in sheep and goats, chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer and elk, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, or CJD, in humans. It's important to note that TSEs are not communicable diseases - they do not spread easily like viruses. Information about BSE increases every day. For up-to-date information, check the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service's BSE page or the Organic Consumers Association's BSE page. Click here to read Willy Street Co-op's BSE statement.
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) commonly known as mad cow disease, is a fatal, neurodegenerative disease of cattle, which infects by a mechanism that surprised biologists on its discovery in the late 20th century. While never having killed cattle on a scale comparable to other livestock diseases, such as foot and mouth and rinderpest, BSE has attracted wide attention because it seems possible to transmit the disease to humans; it is thought to be the cause of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), sometimes called new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (nvCJD), a human brain-wasting disease.
