MadSci Network: Medicine
Query:

Re: Can I get any form of TSE or Scrapie from eating sheep when I go to Ireland

Date: Mon Feb 21 14:51:33 2000
Posted By: Tinsley Davis, Grad student, Microbiology, University of Wisconsin Madison
Area of science: Medicine
ID: 950298077.Me
Message:

Quinn,
	You've offered a provocative question, and I will try to supply you 
with enough information and resources so that you and your family can make 
informed decisions about your diets in Ireland.  TSE stands for 
transmissable spongiform encephalopathy of which there are several 
varieties that have come to public attention in the last decade, most 
notably "mad cow disease."  
	The nature of TSEs is still under scientific debate, but it is 
generally believed that infectious protein particles, called prions, wreak 
havoc in the brain of infected animals causing death.  The tissue is 
destroyed, leaving holes and causing the brain to resemble a sponge, hence 
"spongiform."  Scrapie is a TSE that primarily affects sheep.  Goats are 
also subject to a TSE.  A famous TSE that affects cows is referred to as 
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or "mad cow disease."  Humans are 
also afflicted by a version of this prion disease known as Creutzfeldt-
Jakob disease (CJD).
	Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is rare.  It can be inherited, occur through 
spontaneous mutation, or be contracted if infected tissue is transplanted 
into a patient.  However, in the late 1980's a series of new cases (nvCJD) 
were discovered that have been causally linked to the same agent as BSE, 
meaning that the disease was most likely acquired from eating infected meat 
products.  The United Kingdom and the European Union have since implemented 
strong measures to eradicate BSE, and the situation continues to be 
monitored very closely.  
	It is believed that cows acquired BSE through ingestion of feed that 
contained scrapie-infected sheep meat or BSE-infected cow meat, and it is 
now unlawful to have animal matter in feed.  Since these regulations were 
instituted almost a decade ago, it is unlikely that cows infected before 
the ban are on the market, despite the fact that BSE may take up to 8 years 
to develop.  Furthermore, certain parts of cows and sheep known to harbor 
the disease cannot be sold or processed; these include brain, spinal cord, 
and spleen among other things.  The mention of sheep brings me to your 
initial question.  According to the World Health Organization, despite the 
fact that cows probably acquired BSE from scrapie-infected sheep, there is 
no causal link between human consumption of sheep and nvCJD ( see: http://
www.who.int/emc/diseases/bse/tse_9703.html#a4).   
	I have offered only a summary here because I want you to examine the 
following resources first hand so that you can be armed with information to 
make your own personal decisions.  Undoubtedly, you will want to weigh what 
you consider to be the risks of eating beef or mutton with the benefits of 
immersing yourself in a culture.  Given the info, only you can judge what 
your priorities will be.  I enjoyed the thoughts that your questions 
provoked and am happy that, as a vegetarian, I won't be faced with such 
decisions!
Good luck, and, again, please consult these websites for yourself!
-Tinsley

http://
www.cjdfoundation.org/CJDInfo.html
The Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Foundation , Inc.
This site has comprehensive information on the disease along with links to 
other sites.

http://www.cdc.gov/travel/
madcow.htm
The Center for Disease Control's recommendation for travelers to western 
Europe includes helpful advice about relative safety of meat products.
  
http://www.who.int/
inf-fs/en/fact113.html
The World Health Organization offers a BSE fact sheet. Though it does not 
appear to have been updated since 1996, contact information is given.

 http://www.irlgov.ie/
daff/Bsejan00.htm
Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development
This site is the official site for Ireland's Department of Agriculture and 
offers statistics and measures Ireland has taken to control BSE.  Please 
note that the Republic of Ireland is not part of the UK, and thus I am 
unsure if UK regulations apply in all instances.  However, Ireland is a 
member of the European Union which has instituted strict regulations to 
eradicate BSE.

http://www.
ifst.org/hottop5.htm

The UK's Institute of Food Science and Technology is an exhaustive resource 
for the technical details of BSE and its control.  Legislative measures are 
included.

 http://www.fsai.ie/links.htm
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland has multiple to links to governmental 
departments in Ireland, the UK, and the US.  Information on BSE can be 
found usually through the agriculture department of each country.  A 
comparison of each country's handling of BSE may be useful.

 http://www.maff.gov.uk/animalh/bse/bse-science/scrapie/scrp-q+
a.html
The UK's Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food offers a deeply 
detailed fact sheet on scrapie.  Other links on this excellent site pertain 
to BSE.



Current Queue | Current Queue for Medicine | Medicine archives

Try the links in the MadSci Library for more information on Medicine.



MadSci Home | Information | Search | Random Knowledge Generator | MadSci Archives | Mad Library | MAD Labs | MAD FAQs | Ask a ? | Join Us! | Help Support MadSci


MadSci Network, webadmin@www.madsci.org
© 1995-2000. All rights reserved.