Prion in Saliva of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy–Infected Cattle

Hiroyuki Okada,Kohtaro Miyazawa,Shigeo Fukuda,Morikazu Imamura,Noriko Shimozaki,Takashi Yokoyama,Kentaro Masujin,Yuichi Murayama,Yuichi Matsuura,Shirou Mohri,Miyako Yoshioka,Yoshifumi Iwamaru

doi:10.3201/1812.120528

Abstract

Listen

Prion in Saliva of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy–Infected Cattle

Highlights

The data reported in the ‘‘WHO Tables on Tissue Infectivity Distribution in Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies’’ were originally assembled by an expert group appointed during a WHO Consultation held in 2003 and subsequently updated during a WHO Consultation held in 2005
A word of caution is offered about tissues in Table IB for which positive results are so far limited to either detection of PrPTSE using amplification techniques (PMCA), or infectivity bioassays in Tg mice that over-express PrP
Until more evidence is compiled showing that positive results in experimental PMCA and Tg mouse assays equate to a risk of transmitting disease under natural conditions, it cannot be assumed that such results imply the existence of a substantial risk to the health of animals or humans

Summary

INTRODUCTION

The data reported in the ‘‘WHO Tables on Tissue Infectivity Distribution in Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies’’ were originally assembled by an expert group appointed during a WHO Consultation held in 2003 and subsequently updated during a WHO Consultation held in 2005 (see References section). As new information became available, the group updated the tables and they reflect the current status of knowledge about infectivity in body tissues, secretions, and excretions of humans with sporadic or variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD); cattle with typical or atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE); sheep with scrapie; and (for the first time), deer or elk with Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). It is not the purpose of this document to revise the current ‘‘WHO Guidelines on Tissue Infectivity Distribution in Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies’’ published in 2006, which remain valid, but the new information on tissue infectivity distribution reported here is important in the context of potential transmission of variant CJD through human blood and blood products, as well as through medicinal products prepared with bovine-derived materials, and may have implications for future recommendations.

Not applicable

Nasal mucus