ARS | Publication request: EXPERIMENTAL TRANSMISSION OF TRANSMISSIBLE SPONGIFORM ENCEPHALOPATHIES (TSES) AT THE NATIONAL ANIMAL DISEASE CENTER (NADC), AMES, IOWA, USA: AN UPDATE

Submitted to: Wildlife Disease Association Annual Meeting
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: March 1, 2005
Publication Date: June 26, 2005
Citation: Hamir, A.N., Cutlip, R.C., Miller, J.M., Kunkle, R.A., Greenlee, J.J., Richt, J.A., Bartz, J. 2005. Experimental transmission of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) at the National Animal Disease Center (NADC), Ames, Iowa, USA: An update [abstract]. Annual Wildlife Disease Association Conference. p. 263.

Technical Abstract: Experimental transmission of TSE agents provides valuable information for identification of potential host ranges, and generates much needed prion infected tissues for research. Such investigations have been conducted at NADC since 1990 and have been confined to scrapie, chronic wasting disease (CWD), and transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME). Most TSE investigations require long incubation periods and need BL 2 conditions for conducting the experiments. Initially our studies were restricted to farm livestock (cattle and sheep). However, as a result of increased demand from our stakeholders, we now also conduct research on wildlife (herbivores and carnivores). Some of the significant findings of past experiments at NADC are as follows: 1. Intracerebral inoculation of sheep scrapie to cattle resulted in a neurologic disease that was distinct from bovine spongiform encephalopathy. (Cutlip et al. 1994; 1997). 2. Oral inoculation of cattle did not result in clinical disease during eight years of observation. (Cutlip et al. 2001). 3. Sheep scrapie was transmitted to elk by intracerebral route and the resulting disease could not be distinguished from CWD in elk. (Hamir et al. 2003; 2004 In press). 4. Intracerebral inoculation of CWD from mule deer resulted in transmission of prion disease to small numbers of cattle and one sheep. (Hamir et al. 2001). 5. TME and scrapie agents were transmissible to raccoons via intracerebral route, whereas CWD was not. (Hamir et al. 2003; Hamir et al. 2004). 6. Intracerebral inoculation of TME to cattle resulted in a neurologic disease that could not be differentiated from BSE by the currently available diagnostic tests. (Hamir et al. submitted).