Sludge Watch ==> Chronic Wasting Disease is Transmissible Among Rodents

[Maureen Reilly]

Source: American Society for Microbiology
April 27, 2007


Chronic Wasting Disease Is Transmissible Among Rodents
Science Daily — For the first time, a new study demonstrates that certain 
rodents can be directly infected with CWD and therefore serve as animal 
models for further study of the disease.


Chronic wasting disease (CWD), also known as mad cow disease in cattle and 
Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease in humans, is a transmissible prion disease most 
commonly found in deer and elk. Conversion of the normal host protein to an 
abnormal disease-associated form is an important part in the tracking of 
prion diseases and researchers are hopeful that rodent-adapted CWD models 
could assist in therapeutic development.

In the study transgenic and wild-type mice in addition to Syrian, 
Djungarian, Chinese, Siberian and Armenian hamsters were inoculated with CWD 
samples retrieved from deer and elk and monitored over various amounts of 
time. Distinct neuropathological patterns throughout differing incubation 
periods were observed in Chinese hamsters and transgenic mice offering the 
highest susceptibility rates. Wild-type mice and Djungarian hamsters were 
found not to be susceptible to CWD.

"We have shown that CWD from one or more cervid species can be transmitted 
to Sg, Chinese, Siberian, and Armenian hamsters and to Tg mice that express 
Sg hamster prion protein," say the researchers. "The resulting 
rodent-adapted CWD models could be useful in comparative studies of TSE 
strains in vivo as well as for testing potential anti-TSE therapeutic 
agents."

(G.J. Raymond, L.D. Raymond, K.D. Meade-White, A.G. Hughson, C. Favara, D. 
Gardner, E.S. Williams, M.W. Miller, R.E. Race, B. Caughey. 2007. 
Transmission and adaptation of chronic wasting disease to hamsters and 
transgenic mice: evidence for strains. Journal of Virology, 81. 8: 
4305-4314).

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by American 
Society for Microbiology.