Discovery Of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Research Articles

Mixed effects of mass media reports on the social amplification of risk: frequencies and frames of the BSE reports in newspaper media in the UK

The social amplification of risk framework explains why risks provoke public concerns, and presumes that risk signals and societal responses are determinants of the social process by which risks can be amplified or attenuated. This process considers mass media as central to disseminating information, and a conventional view suggests that media hype risks and increase public fear. This study aimed to examine how the discovery of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), the newspaper reports regarding its potential transmission to humans, and the following social events were framed in the UK, and how media functioned in the process of the social amplification of BSE risks. Newspaper articles were collected from archives of the five UK national dailies for the period 1985–2008, and were coded according to the frames, geographic focus, policy discussion and their slant, and the argument bases for policy discussions. The changes in frequency and frames over time were examined. The number of published articles increased, as BSE-related events occurred. Agriculture and trade remained dominant themes, followed by commerce and incident details. Factual reports, including neutral policy discussions, dominated the articles. When advocacy was evident, appeals for weaker policy measures appeared most frequently, favoring balance between objectives and addressing the rational acceptance of health risks. Newspaper media contributed to the social amplification of BSE risks, responding to societal events by producing numerous alarming articles that did not originate from any single health or industry viewpoint but dominated the press with factual reports. Policy advocacy was suppressed by arguments for the rational acceptance of risks. Such media behaviors demonstrated ambivalence, and may have amplified the risks less than expected, without isolating health risks, increasing public fear, or advocating stronger government policies.

Exploration of genetic factors resulting in abnormal disease in cattle experimentally challenged with bovine spongiform encephalopathy

ABSTRACT Since the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), researchers have orally challenged cattle with infected brain material to study various aspects of disease pathogenesis. Unlike most other pathogens, oral BSE challenge does not always result in the expected clinical presentation and pathology. In a recent study, steers were challenged orally with BSE and all developed clinical signs and were sacrificed and tested. However, despite a similar incubation and clinical presentation, one of the steers did not have detectable PrPSc in its brain. Samples from this animal were analysed for genetic differences as well as for the presence of in vitro PrPSc seeding activity or infectivity to determine the BSE status of this animal and the potential reasons that it was different. Seeding activity was detected in the brainstem of the abnormal steer but it was approximately one million times less than that found in the normal BSE positive steers. Intra-cranial challenge of bovinized transgenic mice resulted in no transmission of disease. The abnormal steer had different genetic sequences in non-coding regions of the PRNP gene but detection of similar genotypes in Canadian BSE field cases, that showed the expected brain pathology, suggested these differences may not be the primary cause of the abnormal result. Breed composition analysis showed a higher Hereford content in the abnormal steer as well as in two Canadian atypical BSE field cases and several additional abnormal experimental animals. This study could point towards a possible impact of breed composition on BSE pathogenesis.

Will Consumers Pay for Voluntary Testing for BSE? Double-Bound CVM Evidence from Canada

ABSTRACTThe 2003 discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)-infected cattle in North America led to efforts to ensure the safety of beef produced in that region, and to some discussion regarding testing live cattle for the BSE prion. This article investigates consumer acceptance and valuation of beef from live cattle that have been voluntarily tested for BSE. Using data from an Internet-based survey of Canadians, double-bound estimates of willingness-to-pay (WTP) are measured. Consumption behaviour and perception covariates were significant predictors of expected WTP, while socio-economic and demographic effects had no measurable impact. Expected WTP was not statistically significant, but ranged from 8% for respondents with a high-purchase intention to −3.5% for those with low/moderate-purchase intention. Further analysis on subsamples of the data showed expected WTP ranges from −5% to 5% for those with low/moderate-purchase intention and from 5% to 22% for those with a high-purchase intension.

Tracing the unintended consequences of food safety regulations for community food security and sustainability: small-scale meat processing in British Columbia

In 2004, as a response to the discovery of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Canadian cattle and other food scares, the Province of British Columbia (BC) developed a comprehensive set of meat inspection regulations, increasing the requirements for food safety infrastructure. Through a series of interviews with farmers and stakeholders, we highlight some of the unintended consequences for community food security and sustainability that resulted from these stringent safety regulations in rural and remote communities in BC. These include the loss of meat production and processing capacities as well as the erosion of local food practices and traditions through the criminalisation of farm-gate sales. We suggest that food safety regulations intended to protect consumer health may result in negative effects for community food security and rural sustainability and that these consequences should be accounted for when developing food policy.

Did public risk perspectives of mad cow disease reflect media representations and actual outcomes?

The first confirmed Canadian case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was reported to the general public on 20 May 2003 and received considerable media coverage. A random‐digit dialled telephone survey of 1207 people in Alberta, Canada, was conducted in spring 2007 to better understand public perspectives on the resulting economic concerns and effects on farming. Comparisons to other risk events and concerns about the overall risk were also examined. Respondents acknowledged BSE to be an economic risk, especially to cattle producers. Health risks were of little concern, especially in comparison to other relevant risk events such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the BSE crisis in Britain. However, the risk of BSE was perceived as more dangerous should a domestically attributed case of variant Creutzfeldt‐Jakob disease (vCJD) (the human form of the disease) occur. The social amplification of risk framework (SARF) was extended to demonstrate that the discovery of BSE in Alberta led to neither an amplification nor attenuation of risk. Rather, risk management strategies employed in Alberta led to a mirroring of media representations and public perceptions of the risk. This unusual situation is in part due to the social and cultural context of the discovery of BSE in Alberta, including the history and pride of beef production in Alberta, how the risk was anchored, and a trust in government fostered by the media. This research also demonstrated how the application and interpretation of SARF is dependent on the comparative value used to assess whether amplification or attenuation has occurred.

Animal Identification and Tracing in the United States

We examine the impacts of adopting animal identification and tracing systems on the U.S. meat and livestock industry. Using a multimarket equilibrium displacement model, we find that a modest increase in domestic demand for beef would offset the costs of an animal identification system. Similarly, an increase in beef export demand equivalent to Japan's beef export market share prior to the 2003 U.S. discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy would offset animal identification system costs.

Welfare Impacts of BSE-Driven Trade Bans

There is often a need to respond quickly to assess the likely implications of policy changes. Here, an equilibrium displacement model is adapted to study international bans on U.S. beef. An equilibrium displacement model offers a convenient way of quickly predicting the effects of supply and demand shocks. The equilibrium displacement model used here has an international sector, which allows the study of issues that past models with only a domestic sector could not. The estimated welfare loss of U.S. beef producers, due to both Japanese and South Korean bans after the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the United States, is $565.31 million.

Managing a Border Threat: BSE and COOL Effects on the Canadian Beef Industry

The Canadian cattle and beef industry incurred severe losses when exports to the United States were halted after the May 2003 discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in a Canadian cow. Although trade in cattle and beef products slowly returned to normal, the potential for upheaval returned when country of origin labeling became mandatory in March 2009. Industry observers fear segregation costs could result in refusal of Canadian cattle by American beef packers. As a result, some industry stakeholders are promoting an expansion of slaughter capacity. This teaching case study focuses on the decision of whether to support such an initiative. Copyright 2009 Agricultural and Applied Economics Association

Do the first 10 days equal a year? Comparing two Canadian public health risk events using the national media

It has been suggested that the way in which a risk event is presented within the first 10 days of media coverage provides the major frames that will dominate news media presentations of any new information about the event over time. A media content analysis for two prominent Canadian health risk events (the E. coli water contamination event in Walkerton, Ontario, in 2000 and the discovery of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy or Mad Cow Disease in a cow in Alberta in 2003) in a major national newspaper was used to examine this hypothesis. For both case studies, the story frames in the first 10 days of coverage were not significantly different than during a full 1-year period following the event, indicating that a 10 day analysis should be sufficient to determine media presentations of the risk events. The increased accessibility of information during this period (as indicated by the greater number of articles on the front page of the newspaper) reinforces the usefulness of looking at the first 10 days to establish dominant frames. However, the 10 day analysis is only reliable for a risk event that remains relatively constant over time provided that media coverage remains high for an extended period and that no new salient issues emerge.

Value of animal traceability systems in managing a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in southwest Kansas (2007)

Concerns regarding management of animal disease and related perceptions about food safety have escalated substantially in recent years. Terrorist attacks of September 2001, discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a dairy cow in December 2003 in Washington, subsequent discoveries of BSEinfected animals in Texas in 2005 and Alabama in 2006, and recent worldwide outbreaks of highly contagious animal diseases (i.e., foot-and-mouth disease [FMD] and Avian influenza) have made apparent the need for animal traceability in U.S. livestock production and marketing. In addition, animal identification systems are rapidly developing throughout the world, effectively increasing international trading standards. One way to combat and more quickly arrest spread of contagious diseases is through animal ID. Capability to rapidly identify locations where an animal has been affects the ability to isolate, trace, and arrest spread of a disease. Animal ID systems are rapidly developing throughout the world and the U.S. is behind many other countries in this development. Efforts to develop animal ID systems in the U.S. were launched prior to the initial BSE discovery, but they gained considerable momentum afterwards. The National Animal Identification System is intended to identify specific animals in the U.S. and record their movement over their lifetime. The goal is to enable a 48-hour trace-back of the movements of any diseased or exposed animal. This will limit spread of animal diseases by enabling faster trace-back of infected animals; limit production losses due to disease presence; reduce the costs of government control, intervention, and eradication; and minimize potential international trade losses3. The purpose of this research is to determine the economic implications of increased improvements in animal ID systems in the event of an FMD outbreak in southwest Kansas. Specifically, a disease spread model is used to determine the probable spread of a hypothetical FMD outbreak. Results from the disease-spread model are integrated into an economic framework to determine economic impacts.

The Cow That Stole Christmas: Framing the First U.S. Mad Cow Crisis

The discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the United States made an impact on the beef industry. Determining how the BSE outbreak was framed by the news media is significant because research indicates that media shape public perceptions. This study examined how several key newspapers framed the 2003 outbreak of BSE in the United States. Determining how the media framed this issue can help communicators ensure bias-free media coverage of similar issues in the future. The study followed established framing analysis categories identified from the literature. There were 149 articles identified in The Washington Post, The Seattle Times, and USA Today for investigation in this study. Findings showed that the BSE issue was framed as an industry crisis and that the tone of the articles and headlines portrayed the beef industry negatively. When compared to the other two newspapers, USA Today framed the issue differently, with economic calamity being the dominant frame. The most heavily cited sources in the articles were government officials. This study recommends that media professionals avoid framing an issue for the public, focusing instead on reporting news in an objective and unbiased manner. Further research is recommended to examine the impact of tone and frame on specific audiences.

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Japan: consumers' food safety perceptions and willingness to pay for tested beef*

The discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as ‘mad cow disease’, in Japan caused anxiety about consuming beef and beef products. As a result, there was a sudden fall in sales of beef that hurt the Japanese beef industry as well as major beef exporters to Japan. We analyse factors that affect Japanese consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) price premiums for BSE-tested beef and estimate the mean WTP for BSE-tested beef using data obtained from a consumer survey in Japan. A single-bounded dichotomous choice contingent valuation model is used to recover the premium amount. We find that attitudes to food safety, reduction in beef consumption following the BSE outbreak, and being female all have a statistically significant positive effect on the WTP for BSE-tested beef. Interestingly, demographic variables such as age and income do not affect the WTP, possibly indicating that the BSE scare similarly affected multiple segments of the population. In our sample, consumers are willing to pay a premium on average of greater than 50 per cent for BSE-tested beef.

The “All-American Meal”: Constructing Confidence in the Case of BSE

Using content analysis of newspaper coverage of the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the United States, we analyze the media's portrayal of the “BSE crisis,” from a social constructionist perspective. We identify the salient claims-makers in the dialogue over food safety as it pertains to the discovery of BSE and we examine the content of their claims to reveal their core messages. We find that public definitions and responses to the disease are influenced by claims-makers and claims-making activities. Some actors construct claims of confidence to deny the severity of the disease, while others construct and disseminate claims of risk in the beef commodity chain, while still others diffuse claims of skepticism and uncertainty. These findings offer support for understanding claims-making as shaped by contextual forces. Claims are not made in a vacuum but are given meaning based upon biophysical and socio-cultural contexts.

Prion diseases

The term “transmissible spongiform encephalopathy” (TSE) refers to a group of rare and fatal neurodegenerative disorders that affect animals and humans. In contrast to all other neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease or Parkinson's disease, TSE can be acquired by infection. It is believed that all TSEs share a common mechanism that involves the conversion of a normal cellular protein, prion (PrP c), to a rogue infectious isoform, scrapie prion (PrP Sc). It is the propagation and accumulation of the PrP Sc in the central nervous system that causes TSE. Hence, prion disease has been used synonymously with TSE. Since the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) has taken center stage among all human TSEs. It is believed that vCJD is acquired from cattle affected with BSE and that vCJD represents the first incidence of TSE transmission from animals to humans. Currently, the only in vitro diagnostic test for human and animal TSE is a complex postmortem test. It is unlikely that the rate of human prion disease will increase dramatically in the future. Nevertheless, a rapid and sensitive antemortem test is needed to monitor the development and potential spread of prion diseases in animals and humans.

Animal transmissible spongiform encephalopathies and genetics.

The genotype of the host plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). In this respect, the most important factor is represented by the gene of the prion protein (PrP). The present work summarizes the currently available knowledge on the genetic basis of TSEs focusing, in particular, on sheep scrapie. Interest in this disease has grown markedly following the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, both for scientific and health reasons. In Italy, specific research grants from the Ministry of Health and the National Research Council (CNR), together with cooperation between the Istituto Superiore di Sanità and the Istituti Zooprofilattici Sperimentali, have allowed us to study the PrP genotype and to investigate the genetic susceptibility to scrapie in the most important Italian sheep breeds, with special reference to Sarda, Comisana and Massese. The PrP genotype in relation to scrapie susceptibility was also studied in goats of Ionica breed.

Small channels and large trials

The culling of the first Dutch dairy herd, after the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Friesland, brought home the potential for disaster. Is an epidemic of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) likely? Certainly, a new clinicopathlogical phenotype of CJD has been recognised in younger patients with a more protracted disease course. Striking early features are psychiatric disturbances, most often depression and sensory symptoms (Zeidler).