Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) in animals: Updates on the current situation in Greece, clinical features, diagnostic technics, epidemiological considerations, legal framework and control measures for the eradication of the disease
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are a group of progressively
degenerative diseases, caused by prions, that affect nervous system of animals
and humans and appear always with fatal outcome. The accumulation of prions in the
nervous tissue causes neuronal death and degenerative lesions visible with microscope
as spongiosis. The disorders affect the brain function, including severe neurological
symptoms that become worse chronically. The origin of infectious prions may be
genetic, sporadic, iatrogenic or via ingestion of infected food and feed.
The main TSEs that affect animals are scrapie in sheep, bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle and chronic wasting disease in deer (CWD). In the 1980s
and 1990s, bovine spongiform encephalopathy appeared in cattle as an outbreak. The
epidemiological survey revealed that the source of the prions was the meat and bone
marrow (MBM) from diseased ruminant used as supplement in the feed. The entrance
of these infected cattle in the food chain has caused an outbreak of a variant form of
CJD. The strict measures put in place including the feeding ban contributed to the
dramatic decline of BSE and vCJD cases. In 2001 the first case of BSE was reported in
Greece and since then, a strict active surveillance program was applied concerning all
the bovine categories.
Scrapie is a prion disease affecting sheep and goats. Scrapie is known at least from
1732 and exist almost all over the world. The disease also cause severe neurological
symptoms (excessive lip smacking and convulsive collapse). Even though scrapie does
not considered as zoonosis, strict measures in affected flocks are imposed by the EU
legislation. Despite the active surveillance program the scrapie cases in Greece are in
the highest rate among the Member States
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