Tuesday, September 09, 2008

CWD MICHIGAN UPDATE September 5, 2008

CWD Update Chronic Wasting Disease Eradication Program Provided by the Animal Industry Division Michigan Department of Agriculture September 5, 2008

Background: The Michigan departments of Agriculture (MDA) and Natural Resources (DNR) confirmed the state’s first case of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in a three-year old white-tailed deer from a privately owned cervid (POC) facility in Kent County on Monday, August 25, 2008. The state quarantined all POC facilities, prohibiting the movement of all – dead or alive – privately-owned deer, elk, or moose. Officials do not yet know how the deer may have contracted the disease. To date, there is no evidence that CWD presents a risk to humans or to animals other than cervids. MDA Actions: The state-wide quarantine on all privately owned cervid facilities is still in place. Facilities may continue to hold shooting events, but all carcasses* must be held until testing clears the animal/or the quarantine is released. A clarification to the quarantines was published and distributed to law enforcement officials, stakeholders and other interested parties. A questions and answers sheet is available under the livestock link on the www.michigan.gov/chronicwastingdisease website.

The test results from the Kent County cervid breeding facility, where the index case was confirmed, found no additional diseased deer. Epidemiologists are reviewing taxidermy records on a facility related to the index case. Taxidermy operations must be licensed and operators must follow Michigan requirements when conducting business with hunters who have harvested animals from other states. Current Michigan law prohibits the import of free-ranging deer or elk carcasses from states or provinces with CWD. Only de-boned meat, antlers, antlers attached to a scull cap cleaned of all brain and muscle tissue, hides and upper canine teeth may be brought into Michigan. A person that is notified by mail or other means, that a carcass imported into Michigan tested positive for CWD must notify the Michigan DNR.

The first tier of traces from the index facility led to five facilities: three in Kent County, one in Montcalm County, and one in Osceola County. These facilities were quarantined by MDA. Records of sales and purchases have been reviewed and have revealed that two facilities received deer from the index case. Four deer from these two facilities were 2 euthanized, samples were tested at MSU’s DCPAH and were found to be negative on Thursday, September 04, 2008. One of the five facilities in tier one, also a Kent County facility conducts a taxidermy operation on the premises. Taxidermy is of great concern because infectious prions in the bones and spinal tissue of the carcass from CWD positive states can infect deer on the facility. MDA, DNR and USDA staff are investigating the records of the taxidermy operation. The second tier investigation to this point, has quarantined four facilities in Bay, Kent, Mecosta, and Saginaw counties. These facilities only sold to the tier one facilities and did not receive anything. They are quarantined as terminal operations and any deer that die, are culled, or shot for sport must be submitted for CWD testing. POC Facilities Quarantined: All POC facilities, except those that only have reindeer, are under quarantine in Michigan until the disease investigation is complete. Epidemiologists are developing a policy for records review and release of quarantines based on management practices and risk.

Disease Surveillance Table: Index facility Depopulated Tier 1 Tier 2 1 Entire index herd tested negative 5 herds 2 trace outs (four test-negative animals) 3 trace ins 4 none of these 4 facilities trace directly to the index facility DNR Actions: The ban on all baiting and feeding of deer and elk in the Lower Peninsula is in effect. MSU’s Product Center for Agriculture Development is taking calls from bait growers/sellers. The Center is using Michigan Market Maker, an interactive mapping system that connects Agriculture processors and businesses with Michigan growers and marketers. http://mi.marketmaker.uiuc.edu/ Information on the baiting and feeding ban is available on the CWD page of the Emerging Diseases website. A mandatory deer check for hunters who take a deer within the Kent County townships of Tyrone, Solon, Nelson, Sparta, Algoma, Courtland, Alpine, Plainfield, and Cannon, is in effect for the 2008 hunting season. The deer heads will be collected and tested for CWD. All transport of live wild deer, elk, and moose is prohibited statewide, including transport for rehabilitation purposes. Education and Outreach: A town hall meeting is scheduled to take place in Kent County on September 9, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. near Grand Rapids. Representatives from MDA, USDA, DNR and MSU will be there to answer questions about CWD, quarantines and the baiting ban. An update on the disease investigation will be presented to the House of Representatives Committee on Outdoor Recreation and Natural Resources on September 9, 2008 and the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Hunting and Fishing committees on September 10, 2008. 3 Questions and Answers regarding POC facility quarantines were sent via email to legislative offices, POC facility executive directors, and DNR law enforcement. They are also posted to the MDA, and Emerging Diseases websites. A coordinated communications action plan is in place. MSU Extension, Michigan Deer and Elk Breeders, MUCC, and many other special interest groups have volunteered to assist with information distribution. Information on CWD may be found on the Michigan Emerging Diseases website at www.michigan.gov/emergingdiseases. Corrected on September 8, 2008 – changed from “meat” to “carcasses”.



http://www.michigan.gov/documents/emergingdiseases/MDA_CWD_Update_September_5_2008_final_248172_7.pdf

http://www.michigan.gov/emergingdiseases/0,1607,7-186-25806_26356---,00.html



Summary of Michigan Wildlife Chronic Wasting Disease Surveillance Updated May 1, 2008 by Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Disease Laboratory



http://www.michigan.gov/documents/emergingdiseases/CWDTable082508_246523_7.pdf



http://www.michigan.gov/images/emergingdiseases/cwdcum1998_2002-050108_246525_7.jpg



Consumer Warning September – December 2008

The state's first case of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was confirmed in a three-year old white-tailed deer from a privately owned cervid (POC) facility in Kent County on August 25, 2008. As a result, all POC facilities in Michigan were quarantined. Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a fatal neurological disease that affects deer, elk and moose. Infected animals display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss and physical debilitation. CWD is believed to be caused by infectious, self-multiplying proteins (prions). Prions are normal cell proteins whose shape has been transformed, causing CWD. To date, CWD is not known to cause or be associated with disease in humans. No increase in human prion disease has been observed in areas of the western United States where CWD has been endemic in cervid populations for decades.

However, because much is still unknown about prion diseases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization advise that humans do NOT consume animals that have been tested and are known to be infected with CWD. In general, people should not handle or consume wild animals that appear sick or act abnormally, regardless of the cause. CWD prions are primarily found in central nervous system tissues (e.g. brain and spinal cord) and the lymphatic system (e.g. tonsils, lymph nodes and spleen) of infected cervids. Humans should avoid the handling or consumption of these tissues. Hunters should wear disposable gloves while field dressing and de-boning meat from the carcass. Recent research has shown that CWD prions may also be found in the saliva and urine of the infected animal. Experiments conducted suggest that CWD prions can persist in the environment and may indirectly infect other susceptible animals that come into contact with the contaminated environment. The meat product you are receiving has come from a quarantined facility under surveillance for CWD. MDA recommends you take de-boned meat from the carcass, hold the meat product in a freezer and consume it only after the facility of origin receives clarification from MDA that the animal was negative for CWD.



http://www.michigan.gov/documents/emergingdiseases/Meat_-_CWD_Consumer_Warning_final_248038_7.pdf



From: TSS Subject: CWD aka MAD DEER/ELK TO HUMANS ??? Date: September 30, 2002 at 7:06 am PST

From: "Belay, Ermias" To: Cc: "Race, Richard (NIH)" ; ; "Belay, Ermias" Sent: Monday, September 30, 2002 9:22 AM Subject: RE: TO CDC AND NIH - PUB MED- 3 MORE DEATHS - CWD - YOUNG HUNTERS

Dear Sir/Madam, In the Archives of Neurology you quoted (the abstract of which was attached to your email), we did not say CWD in humans will present like variant CJD.

That assumption would be wrong. I encourage you to read the whole article and call me if you have questions or need more clarification (phone: 404-639-3091). Also, we do not claim that "no-one has ever been infected with prion disease from eating venison." Our conclusion stating that we found no strong evidence of CWD transmission to humans in the article you quoted or in any other forum is limited to the patients we investigated.

Ermias Belay, M.D. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

-----Original Message----- From: Sent: Sunday, September 29, 2002 10:15 AM To: [log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]; [log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]; [log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask] Subject: TO CDC AND NIH - PUB MED- 3 MORE DEATHS - CWD - YOUNG HUNTERS

Sunday, November 10, 2002 6:26 PM ......snip........end..............TSS

snip...see full text ;



http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/08/cwd-stakeholder-advisory-group.html



The meat product you are receiving has come from a quarantined facility under surveillance for CWD. MDA recommends you take de-boned meat from the carcass, hold the meat product in a freezer and consume it only after the facility of origin receives clarification from MDA that the animal was negative for CWD.<<< HOW WOULD ANYONE KNOW THIS UNLESS EVERY DEER, ELK, CERVID, ON EVERY GAME FARM IN MICHIGAN IS TESTED??? IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO KNOW EXACTLY HOW MANY CWD TEST WERE PERFORMED IN ALL OF THE GAME FARMS IN MICHIGAN SINCE THE 1ST CASE WAS REPORTED ??? CLAIMING 'ALL CLEAR' WITHOUT PERFORMING TEST, would be foolish in my opinion. ...TSS [2] USA: (Wyoming) Date: Mon 29 Oct 2007 Source: The Courier Journal [edited]


http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071028/SPORTS09/710280596/1002/SPORTS





An Indiana hunter will be allowed to keep the head mount of a deer he killed in Wyoming that tested positive for chronic wasting disease.

The unidentified hunter knew about the CWD risk and submitted a portion of the animal to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department for testing before having the meat deboned for transport home. After the animal tested positive for CWD, Wyoming officials contacted the hunter and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.

Indiana DNR officials disposed of the meat, but the hunter was allowed to keep the mount, according to Dr Jennifer Strasser, a veterinarian with the Indiana Board of Animal Health and a state conservation officer. "As long as the skull cap and cape are cleaned properly, the hunter can safely keep the mount," she said. The Indiana DNR (Department of Natural Resources) has tight restrictions on transporting deer, elk, and other cervids into the state. For information go to <http://www.in.gov/dnr/deerhealth/cwd.htm>.


-- communicated by: Terry S Singeltary Sr <mhtml:%7B33B38F65-8D2E-434D-8F9B-8BDCD77D3066%7Dmid://00000295/!x-usc:mailto:flounder9@verizon.net>

[The article does not tell us if the head and cape were cleaned by the hunter or by a professional taxidermist. Neither does the article indicate how this was verified, or if it was verified. If it were done by a taxidermist then one must wonder where the taxidermist is located, in Wyoming or Indiana, or some other state. In the past Indiana had no regulations regarding disposal of offal associated with a head mount and Indiana DNR had no way to track such either. Unless something has changed, the Indiana DNR did not have a complete list of taxidermists within the state. Without such a list or regulation of how the offal for a head/cape mount are to be disposed of it is possible that CWD could have been allowed to enter the state. - Mod.TG

The US states of Wyoming and Indiana can be located on the HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map at <http://healthmap.org/promed?v=40,-97.6,4>. - CopyEd.MJ]



http://michigan-sportsman.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1837107



http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23313



http://www.biggamehunt.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7603



but the hunter was allowed to keep the mount, according to Dr. Jennifer Strasser, a veterinarian with the Indiana Board of Animal Health and a state conservation officer. "As long as the skull cap and cape are cleaned properly, the hunter can safely keep the mount," she said.? <<< i think it's foolish. in my opinion, the complete carcass should have been incinerated, including the head mount. What actions have been taken to prevent the spread of CWD? The movement of high-risk carcass parts (brain, spinal cord, lymph tissues) is a potential avenue through which CWD could be spread from infected areas. Investigations in New York indicate that the infection could have been spread by a taxidermist who accepted specimens from CWD-positive states, allowed rehabilitated fawns access to the taxidermy workshop and spread potentially infectious curing salt waste as a fence line weed killer on his deer farm. Several states, including Pennsylvania, have developed regulations to prohibit the importation of high-risk carcass parts from CWD endemic states. As of April 1, 2006 Pennsylvania's importation ban prohibits the importation of high-risk carcass parts from Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York (CWD containment area only), South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia (Hampshire County only), Wisconsin, Wyoming and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Pennsylvanians hunting in CWD-positive areas should get their animals tested and should leave high-risk carcass parts in the area where the animal was hunted.


http://www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/view.asp?a=458&q=168948



The movement of high-risk carcass parts (brain, spinal cord, lymph tissues) is a potential avenue through which CWD could be spread from infected areas. Investigations in New York indicate that the infection could have been spread by a taxidermist who accepted specimens from CWD-positive states, allowed rehabilitated fawns access to the taxidermy workshop and spread potentially infectious curing salt waste as a fence line weed killer on his deer farm.



http://www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/view.asp?a=458&q=168948



http://www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/lib/pgc/taxidermists_cwd.pdf



http://wolftracksproductions.yuku.com/topic/874/t/Wyoming-deer-killed-by-Hoosier-had-CWD.html



Thursday, August 28, 2008

cwd, feeding, and baiting piles


http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/08/cwd-feeding-and-baiting-piles.html



Sunday, September 07, 2008

CWD LIVE TEST, and the political aspects or fallout of live testing for BSE in cattle in the USA


http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/09/cwd-live-test-and-political-aspects-or.html



Saturday, September 06, 2008

Chronic wasting disease in a Wisconsin white-tailed deer farm 79% INFECTION RATE


http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/09/chronic-wasting-disease-in-wisconsin.html



Monday, August 25, 2008

CWD FIRST DOCUMENTED IN MICHIGAN


http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/08/cwd-first-documented-in-michigan.html



Thursday, August 28, 2008


CWD TISSUE INFECTIVITY brain, lymph node, blood, urine, feces, antler velvet and muscle


http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/08/cwd-tissue-infectivity-brain-lymph-node.html



Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Accelerated High Fidelity Prion Amplification Within and Across Prion Species Barriers



http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/09/accelerated-high-fidelity-prion.html




P01.47

Quantifying the Species Barrier in Chronic Wasting Disease by a Novel in vitro Conversion Assay

Li, L1; Coulthart, MB2; Balachandran, A3; Chakrabartty, A4; Cashman, NR1 1University of British Columbia, Brain Research Centre, Canada; 2Public Health Agency of Canada, National Microbiology Laboratory, Canada; 3Animal Diseases Research Institute, Canada Food Inspection Agency, National Reference Laboratory for Scrapie and CWD, Canada; 4Ontario Cancer Institute and Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Canada

Background: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that can affect North American cervids (deer, elk, and moose). Although the risk of CWD crossing the species barrier and causing human disease is still unknown, however, definite bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) transmission to humans as variant CJD (vCJD), it would seem prudent to limit the exposure of humans to CWD.

Aim: In view of the fact that BSE can be readily transmitted to non-bovid species, it is important to establish the species susceptibility range of CWD.

Methods: In vitro conversion system was performed by incubation of prions with normal brain homogenates as described before, and protease K (PK) resistant PrP was determined by immunoblotting with 6H4 monoclonal prion antibody.

Results: Our results demonstrate that PrPC from cervids (including moose) can be efficiently converted to a protease-resistant form by incubation with elk CWD prions, presumably due to sequence and structural similarities between these species. Interestingly, hamster shows a high conversion ratio by PrPCWD. Moreover, partial denaturation of substrate PrPC can apparently overcome the structural barriers between more distant species.

Conclusions: Our work correctly predicted the transmission of CWD to a wild moose. We find a species barrier for prion protein conversion between cervids and other species, however, this barrier might be overcome if the PrPC substrate has been partially denatured in a cellular environment. Such an environment might also promote CWD transmission to non-cervid species, *** including humans. Acid/GdnHCl-treated brain PrPC was a superior substrate for the in vitro conversion than PrPC treated at physiological pH. This has implications for the process by which the prion protein is converted in disease.



http://www.prion2007.com/pdf/Prion%20Book%20of%20Abstracts.pdf




-------- Original Message --------

Subject: DOCKET-- 03D-0186 -- FDA Issues Draft Guidance on Use of Material From Deer and Elk in Animal Feed; Availability Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 11:47:37 -0500 From: "Terry S. Singeltary Sr." To: mhtml:%7B33B38F65-8D2E-434D-8F9B-8BDCD77D3066%7Dmid://00000295/!x-usc:mailto:fdadockets@oc.fda.gov

Greetings FDA,

i would kindly like to comment on;

Docket 03D-0186

full text ;



http://madcowfeed.blogspot.com/2008/07/docket-03d-0186-fda-issues-draft.html



Friday, August 01, 2008


Excretion of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy infectivity in urine



http://creutzfeldt-jakob-disease.blogspot.com/2008/08/excretion-of-transmissible-spongiform.html




Thursday, April 03, 2008

A prion disease of cervids: Chronic wasting disease

2008 1: Vet Res. 2008 Apr 3;39(4):41

A prion disease of cervids: Chronic wasting disease

Sigurdson CJ.

snip...

*** twenty-seven CJD patients who regularly consumed venison were reported to the Surveillance Center***,

snip...

full text ;



http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2008/04/prion-disease-of-cervids-chronic.html




The statistical incidence of CJD cases in the United States has been revised to reflect that there is one case per 9000 in adults age 55 and older. Eighty-five percent of the cases are sporadic, meaning there is no known cause at present.



http://www.cjdfoundation.org/fact.html



CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE BLOG



http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/




Terry S. Singeltary Sr. P.O. Box 42 Bacliff, Texas USA 77518

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