Abstract
BackgroundAs there is limited information about the clinical signs of BSE and scrapie in goats, studies were conducted to describe the clinical progression of scrapie and BSE in goats and to evaluate a short clinical protocol for its use in detecting scrapie-affected goats in two herds with previously confirmed scrapie cases. Clinical assessments were carried out in five goats intracerebrally infected with the BSE agent as well as five reported scrapie suspects and 346 goats subject to cull from the two herds, 24 of which were retained for further monitoring. The brain and selected lymphoid tissue were examined by postmortem tests for disease confirmation.ResultsThe sensitivity and specificity of the short clinical protocol in detecting a scrapie case in the scrapie-affected herds was 3.9% and 99.6%, respectively, based on the presence of tremor, positive scratch test, extensive hair loss, ataxia and absent menace response. All BSE- and scrapie-affected goats displayed abnormalities in sensation (over-reactivity to external stimuli, startle responses, pruritus, absent menace response) and movement (ataxia, tremor, postural deficits) at an advanced clinical stage but the first detectable sign associated with scrapie or BSE could vary between animals. Signs of pruritus were not always present despite similar prion protein genotypes. Clinical signs of scrapie were also displayed by two scrapie cases that presented with detectable disease-associated prion protein only in lymphoid tissues.ConclusionsBSE and scrapie may present as pruritic and non-pruritic forms in goats. Signs assessed for the clinical diagnosis of scrapie or BSE in goats should include postural and gait abnormalities, pruritus and visual impairment. However, many scrapie cases will be missed if detection is solely based on the display of clinical signs. PrPd accumulation in the brain appeared to be related to the severity of clinical disease but not to the display of individual neurological signs.
Highlights
As there is limited information about the clinical signs of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and scrapie in goats, studies were conducted to describe the clinical progression of scrapie and BSE in goats and to evaluate a short clinical protocol for its use in detecting scrapie-affected goats in two herds with previously confirmed scrapie cases
The clinical signs of sheep experimentally infected with the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) agent have been documented in detail [11,12] but the clinical picture of BSE in goats is less well defined: a short clinical course with ataxia and tremor was reported for intracerebrally inoculated
The objective of this paper is to describe the clinical signs and progression in goats affected by scrapie and BSE and to evaluate a short examination protocol to detect suspect cases in two herds of goats with a high incidence of scrapie
Summary
As there is limited information about the clinical signs of BSE and scrapie in goats, studies were conducted to describe the clinical progression of scrapie and BSE in goats and to evaluate a short clinical protocol for its use in detecting scrapie-affected goats in two herds with previously confirmed scrapie cases. The clinical signs of sheep experimentally infected with the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) agent have been documented in detail [11,12] but the clinical picture of BSE in goats is less well defined: a short clinical course with ataxia and tremor was reported for intracerebrally inoculated animals whilst orally inoculated animals mainly presented with lethargy and weight loss resulting in recumbency over three weeks in the absence of ataxia. The objective of this paper is to describe the clinical signs and progression in goats affected by scrapie and BSE and to evaluate a short examination protocol to detect suspect cases in two herds of goats with a high incidence of scrapie
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