Tuesday, May 02, 2023

Michigan MDARD Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in a Farmed White-Tailed Deer from Newaygo County

MDARD: Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in a Farmed White-Tailed Deer from Newaygo County Michigan 


Dept of Agriculture & Rural Development sent this bulletin at 05/02/2023 11:15 AM EDT 

For immediate release: May 2, 2023 Media contact: Jennifer Holton, 517-284-5724 or Chelsea Lewis, 517-331-1151

MDARD: Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in a Farmed White-Tailed Deer from Newaygo County LANSING, MI –The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) has confirmed chronic wasting disease (CWD) in one white-tailed deer from a farmed cervid facility in Newaygo County. The infected four-and-a-half-year-old deer was discovered through routine testing as part of the state’s CWD surveillance program for farmed deer.

“Limiting the spread and impact of CWD on Michigan’s farmed cervid herds hinges on the ability to detect the disease early and respond promptly,” said State Veterinarian Dr. Nora Wineland. “While regular CWD surveillance testing is central to accomplishing this goal, MDARD’s continued partnership with herd owners, hunters, and other state and federal partners is also crucial to effectively managing this disease. Ensuring the health of Michigan’s farmed cervid population is a team effort.”

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects different cervid species, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose. CWD can be transmitted directly from one animal to another and indirectly through the environment. While an infected animal may appear healthy for months or years, it will eventually display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss, and physical debilitation in the later stages of the disease.

The presence of CWD in farmed cervid facilities and free-ranging deer is not new to Michigan. Since 2008, including this new case, CWD has been detected at 11 Michigan cervid farms in the following counties: Kent (2), Mecosta (4), Montcalm (3), and Newaygo (2).

With free-ranging deer, CWD was first discovered in May 2015; and cases have been found across 11 counties in Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas. To date, no free-ranging white-tailed deer have tested positive for CWD in Newaygo County. 

As part of MDARD’s disease response, investigations are ongoing to rule out any possible exposure to other farmed cervids.

Currently, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that CWD-infected animals should not be consumed as food by either humans or domestic animals.

More information about CWD can be found at Michigan.gov/CWD or Michigan.gov/MDARD-Cervid.

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Michigan MDARD: Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in a Farmed White-Tailed Deer from Newaygo County


Michigan MDARD Captive CWD Positives depopulated and quarantined

Michigan MDARD CWD

APPENDIX A: 2021 REPORTABLE DISEASES

Livestock Diseases: Small Animal, Equine and Exotic Diseases: 

Disease Species Number of Animals

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) Cervid 19


Michigan MDARD CWD

APPENDIX A: 2020 REPORTABLE DISEASES Livestock Diseases: 

Disease Species Number of Animals 

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) Cervid 46 


CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE CASESCWD STATUS OF CAPTIVE HERDS

Updated January 2023

4/19/2022 3 YR Female MI Mecosta WTD Shooter No No 275 Quarantine

11/4/2021 2, 3 Y Male MI Kent Elk Breeder Yes Yes 0 Depopulated

7/15/2021 4 Y Female MI Montcalm WTD Breeder No No 109 Quarantine

4/18/2021 2.5 Y Male MI WTD Shooter No No ukn Quarantine

3/3/2021 4 Y Male MI Montcalm WTD Shooter No NA 14 Quarantine

12/2019 3, 4.5 Y Males MI Newaygo WTD Shooter No No >600 Quarantine

4/2019 2.5 Y Female MI Montcalm WTD Breeder No NA 113 Depopulated

12/2017 1.5 Y Female MI Mecosta WTD Breeder Yes Yes 525 Quarantined

1/2017 2Y Female MI Mecosta WTD & Sika deer Shooter No NA 71 Depopulated


Michigan Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion Totals Since 2015 To Present 242 Confirmed Cases


Michigan Department Ag. Captive Cervid

APPENDIX A: 2021 REPORTABLE DISEASES 

Livestock Disease

Disease Species Number of Animals

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) Cervid 19


Livestock Diseases: Disease Species Number of Animals 

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) Cervid 46 


ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 

• Managing the CWD-positive deer farm identified in March 2019. 

• In May 2019, the USDA released updated CWD Herd Certification Program Standards. Michigan is in the process of implementing these new changes. 


ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 

• Managed the disease investigation and removal of deer from the a CWD positive deer farm identified in December 2017. 

• Due to multiple detections of CWD in free-ranging deer, the parameters for being in a designated special surveillance area were modified to include all herds in an affected county. This change created more comprehensive and efficient responses. 

• Initiated a comprehensive program review with the DNR to streamline and improve the Farmed Cervid Program. 


Since May 2015, the Depaitment has confirmed chronic wasting disease (CWD) in free-ranging white-tailed deer from Clinton, Eaton, Gratiot, Ionia, Ingham, Jackson, Kent, and Montcalm Counties in the Lower Peninsula. In October 2018, the Department confirmed CWD in a free ranging white-tailed deer from Dickinson County in the Upper Peninsula (UP). As of mid-April 2019, after testing approximately 60,545 free-ranging white-tailed deer, 118 were positively confirmed with CWD, with 62 occurring in 2018. Chronic wasting disease was also found in August 2008, at a Kent County privately-owned cervid (POC) facility and in two POC facilities in Mecosta County in 2017. In addition, CWD was found in March 2019 at a POC facility in Montcalm County. 


Michigan MDARD: Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in a Farmed White-Tailed Deer from Mecosta County

For immediate release: May 9, 2022 Media contact: Chelsea Lewis, 517-331-1151 or Jennifer Holton, 517-284-5724

MDARD: Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in a Farmed White-Tailed Deer from Mecosta County 

LANSING, MI – Today, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) confirmed chronic wasting disease (CWD) in one white-tailed deer from a farmed cervid facility in Mecosta County. The infected three-year-old deer was discovered through routine testing as part of the state’s CWD surveillance program for farmed deer.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects different cervid species, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose. The disease can be transmitted directly from one animal to another and indirectly through the environment. While an infected animal may appear healthy for months or years, it will eventually display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss, and physical debilitation in the later stages of the disease.

“MDARD is committed to limiting the spread and impact of this disease. CWD surveillance testing plays an integral part in accomplishing this goal because it helps us to detect and respond to the disease promptly,” said State Veterinarian Dr. Nora Wineland. “In addition, our continued partnership with farmed cervid owners, hunters, and other state and federal partners is also essential to ensure the health of Michigan’s farmed deer population.”

The presence of CWD in farmed cervid facilities and free-ranging deer is not new to Michigan. Since 2008, including this new case, CWD has been detected at 10 Michigan cervid farms in the following counties: Kent (2), Mecosta (4), Montcalm (3), and Newaygo.

With free-ranging deer, CWD was first discovered in May 2015; and cases have been found across nine counties in Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas. To date, no free-ranging white-tailed deer have tested positive for CWD in Mecosta County. 

As part of MDARD’s disease response, investigations are ongoing to rule out any possible exposure to other farmed cervids.

Currently, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization recommend that CWD-infected animals should not be consumed as food by either humans or domestic animals.

More information about CWD can be found at Michigan.gov/CWD or Michigan.gov/MDARD-Cervid.

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Michigan’s 2021 deer seasons included targeted CWD surveillance, 25 positive deer 

April 14, 2022

Hunters encouraged to share harvest results via online survey

Buck walking through lush green forest 

Though Michigan’s 2021 deer hunting seasons ended in late January 2022, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is continuing to accept feedback from hunters about their experiences. Hunter harvest surveys have been sent to a random sample of the state’s deer hunters. In addition, hunters can take a brief online survey. Final harvest survey results will be presented later this summer.

Initial data from Michigan’s 2021 deer hunting seasons – including chronic wasting disease testing results and deer license sales information – was presented at Thursday’s meeting of the Michigan Natural Resources Commission in Lansing, with highlights shared below.

A shift in CWD testing

The DNR has finalized its 2021 surveillance efforts for chronic wasting disease, ultimately testing just over 7,200 deer. The more targeted testing goals are part of the department’s new region-by-region strategy aimed at detecting new outbreaks rather than revisiting known ones.

“We want to thank hunters for their cooperation in helping us meet our CWD surveillance goals,” said DNR Director Dan Eichinger. “Strategic testing for chronic wasting disease is of primary importance for the department, and we couldn’t meet these goals without the committed assistance of deer hunters.”

Eichinger also praised the work of deer processors, taxidermists and local businesses that help collect samples for testing, and other key partners who provide necessary assistance to the department.

In all, 25 CWD-positive deer were confirmed in 2021. Three cases of CWD were detected in Isabella County, which represents a new county where the disease has been found. (Since Michigan’s first confirmation of a CWD-positive wild deer in 2015, CWD has been detected in white-tailed deer in Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Gratiot, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent and Montcalm counties.)

Doe walking through late summer forest “It was not unexpected to find positive cases in Isabella County, as these detections were fairly close to where we’ve identified cases in Montcalm and northern Gratiot County,” said DNR deer and elk specialist Chad Stewart. “Our main areas of infection remain in parts of Montcalm and northeast Kent counties, as well as southern Jackson County, where we knew CWD existed going into the 2021 hunting season.”

Despite the department’s finding of 25 positive animals last year, Stewart cautioned against comparing the low number of positives with the high number of deer tested and concluding there is not a problem.

“The distribution of our samples greatly affects the number of positives we expect to find. Intensive collection of samples in known CWD locations like Montcalm and Kent counties would certainly lead to a high number of positives being detected,” he said. “Our goal this year was to begin to understand what CWD looks like in areas that are historically under-sampled, and we made a lot of strides on that front.”

Stewart said that chronic wasting disease is going to be a problem for parts of Michigan’s deer herd in the future: “Once it becomes established, it is unlikely that we can reverse course on the disease. Prevention and early detection remain our best options for CWD management.”

Hunter walking across plain while sun shines brightly CWD surveillance moving forward

For Michigan’s 2021 deer seasons, the DNR started a multiyear process of strategic, focused CWD surveillance in regions around the state. Last year’s surveillance occurred mainly in the three tiers of counties near the Ohio border. Over the next few years, the remainder of the state will be systematically sampled to determine if CWD is present in other areas where it hasn’t yet been identified.

Hunter numbers

While there was a temporary rise in hunter numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic, participation is declining in Michigan. The trend is not new, nor is it only being observed here. States across the country are feeling the financial pressure of reduced hunter numbers, because sales of hunting licenses comprise a large portion of the funding for critical conservation work.

“Nationwide, hunting has seen a gradual decline over the last several decades,” said Eichinger. “The trend is likely due to a combination of factors including generations of hunters who are aging out of the sport, and younger generations that are less likely to participate in hunting due to societal changes and more competition for their attention.”

Deer hunter numbers in 2021 were down nearly 4% over the previous year with close to 600,000 hunters purchasing a deer license. Hunter number declines are in line with past years going back to peak participation in the mid 90’s.

“While the trend in hunter participation is discouraging, we know that hunting remains an important part of Michigan’s outdoor heritage,” Eichinger said. “That’s why we encourage experienced hunters to introduce the sport to new hunters wherever they can. Spending time with veteran hunters can reduce the learning curve, increase safety and instill a sense of excitement and appreciation for our state’s natural resources.”

To learn more about deer management, CWD and deer hunting in Michigan, and to access the 2021 deer harvest survey, visitMichigan.gov/Deer.


Michigan Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion Update

CWD in Michigan

Since May 2015 when the first CWD deer was found in Michigan, CWD has been confirmed in a number of townships in the Lower Peninsula. As of October 2018, a CWD positive deer was found in the Upper Peninsula in Dickinson County. CWD was also found in August 2008 at a Kent County deer farm facility and in January 2017 in two captive deer that were from a deer farm facility in Mecosta County.





CWD TESTING RESULTS



Desperado Deer: The Persistent Problem of Captive Deer Running Wild

by Editor | May 8, 2018 | Conservation, Hunting

Cervid Escapees – Measuring the Problem

For starters, no one knows for sure how many deer escape from high-fence facilities each year. Neither the DNR nor the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development keep accurate, complete records of the number of escapees reported by citizens and/or investigated by DNR conservation officers. Only in 2017 did the DNR first begin using an electronic database to monitor escaped cervids.

Currently, there are 333 licensed captive cervid facilities in the state, most of which are breeding farms (161) or hunting ranches (132), holding over 21,000 whitetail deer, fallow deer, red deer, Sitka deer and elk. While the number of deer escapees voluntarily reported has declined over recent years, the numbers do not include escapees that are never reported.


Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible neurological disease found in deer and elk populations that produces small lesions in brains of infected animals. As a result, CWD causes weight loss and a decline in body control. It is a species-specific disease, and there have been no cases in humans or other animals.

Currently, to determine the presence of CWD, brain and lymph node samples are taken by an accredited veterinarian after an animal dies. These samples are then submitted for testing.

As part of their operations, all privately-owned cervid (POC) facilities in Michigan are required to submit samples. The number of samples that must be submitted depends on what specific program that a producer participates in: the Chronic Wasting Disease Herd Certification Program (CWD HCP) or the Surveillance Program.

First, for the CWD HCP, all cervids 12 months of age and older that die for any reason must be tested for CWD.

Second, all facilities that are not a part of the CWD HCP must participate in the Surveillance Program. The Surveillance Program requires that all animals 12 months of age and older that die from illness, injury, or euthanasia due to disease must be tested for CWD. In addition, 25% of cervids slaughtered, hunted, or culled must be tested. This number is calculated on an annual basis. In general, all facilities that have at least one death must test at least this one animal. 

Samples for either of these programs can be submitted to a private veterinarian, the Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Lab, or an MDARD drop off location. 

For more information, contact the MDARD Cervid Program.

General Questions/Concerns: MDARD-Cervid@Michigan.gov

Cervid Program Manager: 

Dr. Jennifer Calogero CalogeroJ@Michigan.gov 517-284-5692

Cervid Program Secretary: Melanie Hart HartM1@Michigan.gov 517-284-5679


Privately Owned Cervidae

Raising deer and elk in captivity is jointly regulated by the DNR and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. The DNR oversees the registration of facilities containing farmed cervids and performs inspections of these operations. MDARD manages the disease programs for the state’s POC facilities. Participation in disease surveillance programs - such as those for chronic wasting disease (CWD) and the bovine tuberculosis (TB) - ensures for a robust industry by increasing the marketability of these animals by decreasing their potential for carrying disease. There are nearly 300 licensed facilities in 76 Michigan counties totaling over 63,000 fenced acres. The division conducts about 95 facility inspections per year to ensure that fencing and recordkeeping meet industry standards.

2021 Wildlife Health Section Accomplishments

Tested over 8,000 deer heads for bovine tuberculosis and 

2,500 heads for chronic wasting disease. 

While CWD is not known to be zoonotic, bTB can infect humans, domestic animals and wild animals beyond white-tailed deer.


***> Tested ...and 2,500 heads for chronic wasting disease. 

MDNR estimates put the Michigan deer population around 1.75 million for 2019. Dec 25, 2019

Issues Pros and Cons Despite federal, state, and local regulations and other measures intended to prevent the spread or reduce CWD prevalence, the disease continues to be identified in captive cervid facilities certified as “low risk” through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Herd Certification Program and the CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) Voluntary Herd Certification Programs (participating in a federally-approved CWD program was a measure of the ATA program). According to the USDA data reports, there were 22 new CWD-positive captive cervid facilities identified in FY2020; 41 percent of those were either enrolled or certified in the federal HCP program. There are a variety of unregulated processes used to collect urine, and they often result in the accumulation of a mixture of secretions, therefore providing concurrent contaminated risks. In addition, urine products are frequently batched/combined from multiple locations and distributed across the country, which increases the likelihood of CWDinfected urine entering the market. There are currently no standard regulations to ensure that urine collected for lures and attractants are disease-free. 

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Biological

Nationally, CWD continues to be found in captive cervid facilities. 

From the years 2012 to 2021, there have been 66 privately owned cervid facilities nationally where CWD has been identified. 

Of those 66 facilities, 39 were enrolled in the HCP, and 32 of those facilities were HCP-certified (meaning there had been at least five years of disease monitoring and no rule violations) indicating low risk for CWD. 

This national USDA CWD HCP is not mandatory, and more importantly, recent CWD events show that it does not and cannot guarantee that captive deer herds are CWD free. 

To date, CWD has been found in more than 140 captive deer herds in 16 states and two Canadian provinces. 



Front. Vet. Sci., 18 January 2022 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2021.824815

Evaluation of Real-Time Quaking-Induced Conversion, ELISA, and Immunohistochemistry for Chronic Wasting Disease Diagnosis

All, except one, CWD positive RLNs analyzed were from ten Counties geographically located in the West Michigan region of the Lower Peninsula. Taken together, we show evidence that the RT-QuIC assay is comparable to ELISA and IHC and could be helpful for routine CWD detection in surveillance programs. RT-QuIC also demonstrated that CWD prions are distributed across lymph nodes in a variety of anatomic locations.


Michigan:

September, 2019: NVSL confirmed CWD in a two year old female white-tailed deer in Montcalm County. The doe was a natural addition to the breeding herd which consists of 50 white-tailed deer. This herd is not enrolled in the Federal HCP, is within a CWDendemic area, and is under quarantine. 


Michigan: One new CWD positive herd

Hunt preserve of >600 WTD, not in HCP, populated and under quarantine


Farmed Cervid Chronic Wasting Disease Management and Response Activities 2021 Cooperative Agreements



APHIS also conducts monitoring and surveillance activities to detect diseases that affect cervids, including chronic wasting disease (CWD) and tuberculosis (TB). APHIS’ voluntary national CWD Herd Certification Plan (HCP) works with States, Tribes, and the cervid industry to control CWD in farmed cervids by allowing the interstate movement only from certified herds. 

Currently, 28 States participate in the national CWD HCP. In FY 2019 APHIS tested more than 11,000 farmed cervids for CWD. 

As a result, APHIS identified 17 new CWD positive farmed cervid herds.


Wild Cervid Chronic Wasting Disease Management and Response Activities 2021 Funding Opportunity
Tribal Nations Wild Cervid Chronic Wasting Disease Opportunities 2021 Funding Opportunity


VS Farmed Cervid Chronic Wasting Disease Management and Response Activities 2021 Funding Opportunity 

RISK, UNCERTAINTY AND DECISION-MAKING: ASSESSING CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE OCCURRENCE RISK ACROSS AN EMERGENCE SPECTRUM

Exposure hazards included point locations of captive cervid facilities, deer processors and taxidermists, and out-of-area hunting connectivity. 

As of 2018, there were a total of 296 ranch and full-registration facilities in Michigan. In terms of their spatial distribution, there were facilities in 196 out of 1240 townships, and 71 out of 83 counties (Fig. 2.1). There were 468 registered deer processors and taxidermists in 2017, the year for which data were available. Processors and taxidermists occurred in 696 out of 1240 townships, and 82 out of 83 counties (Fig. 2.2). Lastly, out-of-area hunting was based on both intrastate and interstate metrics. For intrastate hunting, the percentage of respondents that travelled from one county to another was scaled up to the total number of hunters that reside in a county. CWD positive counties included Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Gratiot, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent and Montcalm counties. The average number of hunters per resident county from 2013 – 2017 who travelled to a CWD positive county ranged from 0 – 3832 per year (Fig. 2.3). A low number (i.e., low connectivity) of interstate hunters ranged from 0 – 1059 for the 5-year average, whereas a high number ranged from 1060 – 3832 (Fig. 2.3). Interstate hunting was quantified as the number of Michigan resident hunters who purchased an out-of-state license in Wisconsin between years 2013 – 2017 (i.e., nonresident license). For interstate connectivity, I found that average annual number of Michigan county residents that traveled to Wisconsin between 2013 –2017 was 0 – 170 per year (Fig. 2.4). A low number (i.e., low connectivity) of interstate hunters ranged from 0 – 39 for the 5-year average, whereas a high number ranged from 40 – 170 (Fig. 2.4). 

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In 2017, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) detected CWD in a 3- year-old white-tailed doe submitted during an early season youth hunt (MDNR 2017). Additional surveillance in the area during 2017 identified 45 total CWD-positive animals in a concentrated disease focus in the west-central Lower Peninsula of Michigan within Kent and Montcalm counties. Nine previous CWD detections had occurred in the state in 2015 and 2016; however, the 2017 detections were the first evidence that CWD might be widespread and established within Michigan. Based on a single year of observation, predicting the area affected by the cluster of disease with distance benchmarks would likely fail to fully encapsulate the affected area. Furthermore, based on the sparsity of data, fitting complex disease models was not possible. Thus, there was an immediate need for an alternative approach that could more appropriately estimate the extent of CWD and identify locations at high risk using limited available information 

https://d.lib.msu.edu/etd/49428/datastream/OBJ/View/

Prion protein polymorphisms in Michigan white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

Caitlin N. Ott-ConnORCID Icon,Julie A. Blanchong &Wes A. Larson

Pages 183-190 | Received 22 Jul 2021, Accepted 01 Oct 2021, Published online: 09 Nov 2021


ABSTRACT

Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a well-described transmissible spongiform encephalopathy of the Cervidae family, is associated with the aggregation of an abnormal isoform (PrPCWD) of the naturally occurring host prion protein (PrPC). Variations in the PrP gene (PRNP) have been associated with CWD rate of infection and disease progression. We analysed 568 free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) from 9 CWD-positive Michigan counties for PRNP polymorphisms. Sampling included 185 CWD-positive, 332 CWD non-detected, and an additional 51 CWD non-detected paired to CWD-positives by sex, age, and harvest location. We found 12 polymorphic sites of which 5 were non-synonymous and resulted in a change in amino acid composition. Thirteen haplotypes were predicted, of which 11 have previously been described. Using logistic regression, consistent with other studies, we found haplotypes C (OR = 0.488, 95% CI = 0.321–0.730, P < 0.001) and F (OR = 0.122, 95% CI = 0.007–0.612, P < 0.05) and diplotype BC (OR = 0.340, 95% CI = 0.154–0.709, P < 0.01) were less likely to be found in deer infected with CWD. As has also been documented in other studies, the presence of a serine at amino acid 96 was less likely to be found in deer infected with CWD (P < 0.001, OR = 0.360 and 95% CI = 0.227–0.556). Identification of PRNP polymorphisms associated with reduced vulnerability to CWD in Michigan deer and their spatial distribution can help managers design surveillance programmes and identify and prioritize areas for CWD management.

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Results

PRNP sequences were determined for 568 free-ranging white-tailed deer from 9 CWD-positive Michigan counties. Of these samples, 185 were CWD-positive, 332 were CWD non-detected, and an additional 51 CWD non-detected were paired to CWD-positives to control for sex, age, and harvest location (Figure 1). Within the analysed 625bp region of the PRNP gene, we detected 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), 9 of which had been previously reported [22, 29, 33, 36, 38–41]. Of the 12 SNPs, 5 were non-synonymous, resulting in a change to the amino acid sequence (Table 1). BLAST and literature searches indicated that 589A/G, 642 G/A, and 643 C/A had not previously been reported. Full associated sequences have been deposited in GenBank under accession numbers MZ913400 – MZ913401.

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As CWD detections continue to increase the areas under surveillance, the use of regionally specific data to allocate testing efforts and funding will be pivotal for success. Identification of PRNP polymorphisms associated with reduced vulnerability to CWD and their spatial distribution and prevalence may help managers design surveillance programmes to identify and prioritize areas for CWD management when partnered with movement data and anticipated deposition of prions onto the landscape over time.


77. Assessing chronic wasting disease strain differences in free-ranging cervids across the United States

Kaitlyn M. Wagnera, Caitlin Ott-Connb, Kelly Strakab, Bob Dittmarc, Jasmine Battend, Robyn Piercea, Mercedes Hennessya, Elizabeth Gordona, Brett Israela, Jenn Ballarde and Mark D Zabela

aPrion Research Center at Colorado State University; bMichigan Department of Natural Resources; cTexas Parks and Wildlife Department; dMissouri Department of Conservation, 5. Arkansas Game and Fish Commission CONTACT Kaitlyn M. Wagner miedkait@rams.colostate.edu

ABSTRACT

Background/Introduction: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an invariably fatal prion disease affecting captive and free-ranging cervids, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, moose, elk, and reindeer. Since the initial description of the disease in the 1960’s, CWD has spread to 23 states, 3 Canadian Provinces, South Korea, Norway and, most recently, Finland. While some outbreaks of CWD were caused by transport of infected animals from endemic regions, the origin of CWD in other epizootics is unclear and has not been characterized. Previous studies have shown that there are two distinct strains of CWD. However, the continuous spread and the unclear origin of several outbreaks warrant continued surveillance and further characterization of strain diversity.

Materials and Methods: To address these knowledge gaps, we used biochemical tests to assess strain differences between CWD outbreaks in Michigan, Texas, Missouri, and Colorado, USA. Brain or lymph node samples were homogenized and digested in 50 µg/mL proteinase K (PK). These samples were then run on a Western blot to assess glycoform ratio and electrophoretic mobility. Texas samples were digested in 100 µg/mL PK. To assess conformational stability, brain or lymph node homogenates were incubated in increasing concentrations of guanidine hydrochloride from 0 M to 4 M in 0.5 M increments. Samples were then precipitated in methanol overnight, washed and PK digested in 50 µg/mL PK before slot blotting.

Results: Our results have found significant differences in glycoform ratio between CWD from Michigan and Colorado, but no differences were observed in conformational stability assays. Interestingly, when testing our CWD isolates from Texas to analyse electrophoretic mobility and glycoform ratio, we found that these samples did not exhibit the characteristic band shift when treated with PK, but PK resistant material remained. Additionally, results from our conformational stability assay demonstrate a unique profile of these Texas isolates. Testing of samples from Missouri is currently underway.

Conclusions: Thus far, our data indicate that there are strain differences between CWD circulating in Michigan and CWD in Colorado and provide important insight into CWD strain differences between two non-contiguous outbreaks. We have also identified a unique strain of CWD in Texas with biochemical strain properties not seen in any of our other CWD isolates. These results highlight the importance of continued surveillance to better understand this devastating disease. These results have important implications for CWD emergence, evolution and our understanding of prion strain heterogeneity on the landscape.


Special Surveillance Area (SSA) Counties for Farmed Deer

Calhoun (CA)

Clinton (CN)

Dickinson (DK)

Eaton (ET)

Gratiot (GT)

Hillsdale (HD)

Ingham (IN)

Ionia (IO)

Jackson (JK)

Kent (KN)

Lenawee (LN)

Livingston (LV)

Mecosta (MT)

Menominee (MO)

Montcalm (MT)

Newaygo (NW)

Saginaw (SG)

Shiawassee (SH)

Washtenaw (WA)

SSAs as of December 18, 2019

SSAs are established when a free-ranging or farmed deer is identified with chronic wasting disease.

Contact the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Cervid Program at MDARD-Cervid@Michigan.gov or 517-284-5679.




Expanding Distribution of Chronic Wasting Disease ACTIVE

By National Wildlife Health Center February 5, 2022


Michigan CWD Testing Results Deer Harvested in 2021 Statewide Total 22 Positive To Date For Year in Wild

CWD Testing Results for Deer Harvested in 2021

Test results updated as of December 13, 2021.

Totals reflected in this update only include those with final test results.

Deer with pending results are not included in these totals.

Zone Total Tested Number Positive

UP CWD Core Surveillance Area 193 0

South Isabella + Gratiot 749 3

South Jackson 855 12

Totals 1797 15

Testing numbers above are part of the county totals in the larger table below. 

County Name Total Tested Number Positive

Allegan 290 0

Barry 150 0

Berrien 77 0

Branch 104 0

Calhoun 139 0

Cass 64 0

Eaton 82 0

Hillsdale 204 0

N. Jackson 135 0

Kalamazoo 196 0

Lenawee 118 0

Livingston 68 0

Macomb 13 0

Monroe 34 0

Oakland 43 0

St. Joseph 81 0

Van Buren 155 0

Washtenaw 178 0

Wayne 9 0

Total to date 2106 0

These counties are open for hunter service testing November 15-18 ONLY. There are no surveillance goals.

County Name Total Tested Number Positive

Clinton 45 0

Dickinson (non-core) 3 0

Ingham 32 0

Ionia 35 1

Kent 47 1

Montcalm 53 5

Total to date 215 7 Deer tested in remainder of state 113 0 Positive

Statewide Total 3865 22 Positive 


Michigan MDARD Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in Two Farmed Elk from Kent County 

For immediate release: November 18, 2021 Media contact: Chelsea Lewis-Parisio, 517-331-1151

MDARD: Chronic Wasting Disease Confirmed in Two Farmed Elk from Kent County 

LANSING, MI – Today, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) confirmed two cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in elk from a farmed cervid facility in Kent County. The two infected elk, a two-and-a-half-year-old and a three-and-a-half-year-old, were discovered through disease tracing efforts that resulted from finding CWD in a different Michigan farmed cervid herd. These are the first cases of CWD in Michigan elk.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects different cervid species, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose. The disease can be transmitted directly from one animal to another and indirectly through the environment. While an infected animal may appear healthy for months or years, it will eventually display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss, and physical debilitation in the latter stages of the disease.

“The discovery of chronic wasting disease in elk housed at a facility linked to a positive animal is not surprising,” said State Veterinarian Dr. Nora Wineland, DVM. “MDARD’s main priority is to limit the spread of this disease by working together with other state departments, farmers, and ranchers. These findings underscore how important it is to pay attention to CWD and the movement of animals that may allow the disease to spread.”

The presence of CWD in farmed cervid facilities and free-ranging deer is not new to Michigan. Since 2008, including these new cases, CWD has been detected at nine Michigan cervid farms in the following counties: Kent (2), Mecosta (3), Montcalm (3), and Newaygo.

No wild elk have tested positive for CWD in Michigan. The disease was first discovered in free-ranging deer in May 2015; cases have been found across nine counties in Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas. To date, 37 free-ranging white-tailed deer have tested positive for CWD in Kent County. 

As part of MDARD’s disease response, investigations are ongoing to rule out any possible exposure to other farmed cervids.

Currently, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization recommend that animals that have tested positive for CWD should not be consumed as food by either humans or domestic animals.

More information about CWD can be found at http://Michigan.gov/CWD or http://Michigan.gov/MDARD-Cervid.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 2022 
Michigan’s 2021 deer seasons included targeted CWD surveillance, 25 positive deer

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2021 

Prion protein polymorphisms in Michigan white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)


WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2021 

Michigan shifts approach to monitor spread of deadly deer disease deer CWD TSE Prion 220 cases confirmed in WILD to date, captive? 


FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2021

Michigan CWD TSE Prion TOTAL WILD CERVID 220 POSITIVE TO DATE, CAPTIVE CWD TOTAL


Michigan CWD TSE Prion TOTAL WILD CERVID 220 POSITIVE TO DATE, CAPTIVE CWD TOTAL???

PERSONAL COMMUNICATION DNR...see;

Mon, Aug 9, 2021 11:46 am

''The interactive hot map you are referencing is updated regularly, at least once a month, but even more regularly during hunting season as that is when we receive most samples and theoretical positives. All 209 animals to date are wild. No captive cervid deer are listed in our testing metrics because they fall into a different category of management as overseen by Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD). Because they are captive they are treated as domestic animals – same as cows, horses, and pigs. If you were inquiring about CWD+ private cervids you will have to reach out to them as we don’t so much focus on total individuals positive as we do positive herds and locations (which again they would be best to ask).''
 
''Our 2021 testing totals account for 11 positives this year, all USDA-APHIS or Disease Permit culled animals in Gratiot (3) and Jackson (8) counties.  I am digging into when the interactive map was last updated now, but at a worst that would but our total positive at 220 over Michigan’s history of testing if it hadn’t been recently updated (which is possible as USDA-APHIS shooting just recently started up again in July after a multi-month break).''

YOU can see CWD here;


Where has chronic wasting disease (CWD) been found in Michigan?

Since the initial finding of CWD on May 20, 2015, free-ranging deer in Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Gratiot, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent and Montcalm counties have been positively confirmed with CWD. Please visit Michigan.gov/CWD for more information on CWD and the latest news and testing updates. See pages 56-57 and 61-62 for important regulations pertaining to CWD. 


Assessing drivers of spread and transmission of Chronic Wasting Disease in Michigan deer

Primary Contact: Dr. Dwayne Etter, DNR Wildlife Division, Lansing, Michigan


Phone: (517) 284-4720

DNR Financial Support: $120,149 in FY19, $502,737 total.

Study Area: South-central Lower Peninsula

Time Frame: 10/1/2017-9/30/2022

Abstract:

The occurrence of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in Michigan challenges the foundations of wildlife conservation, both in the short term and perhaps more significantly in the longer term. In the short term, CWD is causing reallocation of precious financial and staff-time resources and will be widely disruptive to existing programs of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR). In the longer term, diseases such as CWD pose a threat to the financial cornerstone of fisheries and wildlife programs because sales of deer hunting licenses represent a large proportion of annual revenue for the Division of Wildlife. Recognizing these threats, the Division of Wildlife included wildlife disease in its Guiding Principles and Strategies (Objective 1.3: monitor and preserve the health of Michigan’s wildlife) and prepared a comprehensive Surveillance and Response Plan for Chronic Wasting Disease of Free-ranging and Privately Owned Cervids.

Chronic wasting disease is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that infects North American cervids including white-tailed deer (Williams 2005). The infectious agent of CWD is a misfolded protein, a prion, which accumulates in the brainstem and lymphatic tissue of infected animals and results in neurodegeneration and eventual death. In states where CWD is established it has emerged as a major threat, reducing the health of populations and causing long-term population decline (Edmunds et al. 2016, Gross and Miller 2001, Manjerovic et al. 2014).

The discovery of CWD in Michigan creates an immediate need for population monitoring and surveillance of at-risk deer populations. Since 2015, nine infected individuals have been identified following collection through state surveillance efforts, representing key successes in targeted disease management. However, the continued discovery of infected individuals in 2016 suggests a high likelihood that additional infected individuals remain on the landscape. The occurrence of a small number of infected animals across a relatively small geographic region in mid-Michigan indicates that the disease is still emerging.

What distinguishes the research proposed here from extensive work done in other states is that CWD is still in an emergent phase in Michigan. Michigan discovered the disease early during a time when transmission of the disease may be more dependent on the density of deer on the landscape because most infections are through direct contact of infected animals with susceptible individuals. This situation is similar only to New York and Minnesota. In all other states where CWD has been discovered, the disease was already well established, and transmission included infection mediated by contact of susceptible individuals with severely contaminated environments. Our research in Michigan is intended to explore management options for the control of an emerging occurrence of CWD through better understanding of behavior and population dynamics of deer inhabiting areas of known infection. 

The goal of this research is to improve the cost-efficiency of detecting CWD when it is still rare and removing animals from the landscape to control the spread of disease, by reducing contact among deer and potentially eliminating infectious animals. We intend to take a multi-pronged approach to accomplish this goal and the work described here will complement another study that seeks to develop new methods for detecting and removing diseased animals. The effort described here is designed to accumulate a dataset on movement behavior of deer that is of high temporal and spatial resolution to address questions about dispersal rates, directions and distances; evaluate hypotheses about environmental factors that are likely influences on dispersal behavior; parameterize risk maps of first-order contact for Michigan in concert with data and prior research in New York State; and create models of the interaction of landscape contexts (e.g., suburban, rural) and habitat characteristics that can be used to direct hunters and biologists to increase the efficiency of surveillance and removal actions. Our objectives address the strategic plans set forth by the Michigan DNR to “1.3.1: Develop and implement strategies to prevent and control diseases before they occur; 1.3.2: Respond to wildlife disease outbreaks; 1.3.4: Conduct research and monitoring to provide information to make management recommendations regarding wildlife disease; 1.3.5: Raise awareness regarding current and emerging wildlife health issues; and 1.3.6: Work with State and Federal agencies, and stakeholders to address wildlife health issues.” 

12 IC4117 (Rev. 02/02/2021) 

control of an emerging occurrence of CWD through better understanding of behavior and population dynamics of deer inhabiting areas of known infection.

The goal of this research is to improve the cost-efficiency of detecting CWD when it is still rare and removing animals from the landscape to control the spread of disease, by reducing contact among deer and potentially eliminating infectious animals. We intend to take a multi-pronged approach to accomplish this goal and the work described here will complement another study that seeks to develop new methods for detecting and removing diseased animals. The effort described here is designed to accumulate a dataset on movement behavior of deer that is of high temporal and spatial resolution to address questions about dispersal rates, directions and distances; evaluate hypotheses about environmental factors that are likely influences on dispersal behavior; parameterize risk maps of first-order contact for Michigan in concert with data and prior research in New York State; and create models of the interaction of landscape contexts (e.g., suburban, rural) and habitat characteristics that can be used to direct hunters and biologists to increase the efficiency of surveillance and removal actions.

Our objectives address the strategic plans set forth by the Michigan DNR to “1.3.1: Develop and implement strategies to prevent and control diseases before they occur; 1.3.2: Respond to wildlife disease outbreaks; 1.3.4: Conduct research and monitoring to provide information to make management recommendations regarding wildlife disease; 1.3.5: Raise awareness regarding current and emerging wildlife health issues; and 1.3.6: Work with State and Federal agencies, and stakeholders to address wildlife health issues.” 

Management of Chronic Wasting Disease in Michigan

Primary Contact: Dr. Kelly Straka, DNR Wildlife Division, Lansing, Michigan


Phone: (517) 336-5030

DNR Financial Support: $50,000 in FY19, $250,000 total.

Study Area: Statewide.

Time Frame: 10/01/2016-09/30/2022

Abstract: Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that infects North American cervids including white-tailed deer (Williams 2005). The infectious agent of CWD is a misfolded protein, a prion, that accumulates in the brainstem and lymphatic tissue of infected animals and results in neurodegeneration and eventual death. In states where CWD is established, it has emerged as a major threat, reducing the health of populations and causing long-term population decline (Edmunds et. al. 2016, Gross and Miller 2001, Manjerovic et. al. 2014). 15 IC4117 (Rev. 02/02/2021) 

The occurrence of CWD in Michigan challenges the foundations of wildlife conservation, both in the short term and perhaps more significantly in the longer term. In the short term, CWD is causing reallocation of precious financial and staff-time resources and will be widely disruptive to existing programs. In the longer term, diseases such as CWD pose a threat to the financial cornerstone of fisheries and wildlife programs because sales of deer hunting licenses represent such a large proportion of annual revenue. Recognizing these threats, the Wildlife Division included wildlife disease in its Guiding Principles and Strategies (Objective 1.3: Monitor and preserve the health of Michigan’s wildlife) and prepared a comprehensive Surveillance and Response Plan for Chronic Wasting Disease of Free-ranging and Privately Owned Cervids.

The discovery of CWD in Michigan creates an immediate need for tools that better assess the return-oninvestment of funds for surveillance and management of CWD. We propose building on risk assessment and modeling that was previously developed during a CWD outbreak in New York. There, we showed how costs of CWD containment could be reduced dramatically by using risk modeling procedures and mapping areas where management action would have the greatest impact on disease control (Williams et. al. 2014). We plan to expand on those efforts by adapting them to Michigan and drawing on newly emerging tools for population estimation and risk analysis procedures that we have been using on other research (e.g., local-scale monitoring of deer populations using distance sampling and evaluation of wild turkey harvest regulations using statistical risk modeling).

Our objectives address the strategies set forth in the Wildlife Division’s Guiding Principles and Strategies to “1.3.1: Develop and implement strategies to prevent and control diseases before they occur, 1.3.2: Respond to wildlife disease outbreaks, 1.3.4: Conduct research and monitoring to provide information to make management recommendations regarding wildlife disease, 1.3.5: Raise awareness regarding current and emerging wildlife health issues and 1.3.6: Work with State and Federal agencies and stakeholders to address wildlife health issues.” Specifically, we will provide managers with decision tools to: (1) evaluate the risk of spread of disease against the geographic extent of management action and attendant financial and political costs, (2) evaluate management alternatives to control CWD and assess the risk of local cases of CWD transitioning from emergent status to established status (where the disease becomes a self-sustaining reservoir within a population) and (3) monitor management outcomes for deer population abundance and disease prevalence. 

Quantifying Upper Peninsula deer movements and abundance: preparing for CWD management

Primary Contact: Dr. Dean Beyer Jr., DNR Wildlife Division, Marquette, Michigan


Phone: (906) 228-6561

DNR Financial Support: $117,759 in FY19, $613,001 total.

Study Area: Upper Peninsula

Time Frame: 10/1/2017-9/30/2021

Abstract:

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) occurs in free-ranging white-tailed deer in Lower Michigan, and in our neighboring state of Wisconsin where the disease is endemic. Although wildlife managers have not documented CWD in the Upper Peninsula, managers found infected deer in two Wisconsin captive cervid facilities near the Michigan border. Officials identified the disease in a facility in Oneida County, Wisconsin, about 40 km from our Iron County border and a second positive deer in Oconto County, Wisconsin, about 50 km from our Menominee County border.

While it is not possible to predict if or when we will find CWD in the Upper Peninsula, preparations seem prudent. A scientifically based understanding of deer movements and estimates of population abundance are critical for developing management recommendations in response to CWD. Deer movements and abundance can influence the probability of disease occurrence, contact rates which can affect transmission rate, and geographic extent of an outbreak (e.g., Oyer et al. 2007, Skult et al. 2008, Webb et al. 2010). Importantly, these data take time to gather and managers need this information at the time of first discovery. Thus, waiting for a disease outbreak before gathering these data would put managers at a disadvantage. Important deer movements to understand include seasonal home ranges, migration (especially important in the Upper Peninsula), dispersal, transient, and exploratory.

Information on these movements would inform decisions on identification of CWD management zones. The current strategy is to establish a 16-km radius circle around the location of an infected cervid and include entire counties whose boundaries intersect this circle as part of the CWD management zone. Further, if results from local population surveys or other credible scientific data suggest that cervids from within the radius are likely to move beyond the management zone boundary, the boundary should be expanded accordingly. In the Upper Peninsula, deer can seasonally migrate 50 km (Van Deelen et al. 1998), with overall movements exceeding 80 km (Doepker et al. 2015). These migratory movements, as well as other movements (e.g., dispersal), are currently unknown and certainly not aligned with or contained within county boundaries. Although some information exists on deer movements in the UP, most of this work relied on tag returns that do not provide the needed level of spatial and temporal resolution to inform management responses to a disease outbreak.

Consequently, If CWD was detected in the UP, large areas would likely be under surveillance and management that would not contain infected deer and large areas with potential for infected deer would not be within the prescribed surveillance zone, rendering the current management zone less effective. The Upper Peninsula Region (UPR), Biological and Social Sciences Section (BSSS), Wildlife Health Section (WHS), and Mississippi State University (MSU) wish to develop a program to address the need for information on deer movements. The core work would entail deploying GPS collars on deer in select wintering complexes and conditional winter range (starting along WI border) and documenting movements over three years. To complete the capture and collaring work, we would work cooperatively with interested sportspersons. 







WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 01, 2021 

Michigan CWD TSE Prion 211 Cases To Date


Michigan CWD TSE Prion 211 Cases To Date

Deer Tested for Chronic Wasting Disease Since Detection of First Positive Free-ranging Deer (May 2015) 


Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Surveillance Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible neurological disease found in deer and elk populations that produces small lesions in brains of infected animals. As a result, CWD causes weight loss and a decline in body control. It is a species-specific disease, and there have been no cases in humans or other animals.

Currently, to determine the presence of CWD, brain and lymph node samples are taken by an accredited veterinarian after an animal dies. These samples are then submitted for testing.

As part of their operations, all privately-owned cervid (POC) facilities in Michigan are required to submit samples. The number of samples that must be submitted depends on what specific program that a producer participates in: the Chronic Wasting Disease Herd Certification Program (CWD HCP) or the Surveillance Program.

First, for the CWD HCP, all cervids 12 months of age and older that die for any reason must be tested for CWD.

Second, all facilities that are not a part of the CWD HCP must participate in the Surveillance Program. The Surveillance Program requires that all animals 12 months of age and older that die from illness, injury, or euthanasia due to disease must be tested for CWD. In addition, 25% of cervids slaughtered, hunted, or culled must be tested. This number is calculated on an annual basis. In general, all facilities that have at least one death must test at least this one animal. 

Samples for either of these programs can be submitted to a private veterinarian, the Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Lab, or an MDARD drop off location. 

For more information, contact the MDARD Cervid Program.


Special Surveillance Area (SSA) If a free-ranging or privately-owned cervid (POC) tests positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD), then a buffer circle is created around that positive animal. This buffer circle is referred to as a Special Surveillance Area (SSA). POC facilities that fall within a SSA will have increased CWD testing requirements.

More specifically, if a free-ranging cervid is found to be positive for CWD, a 15-mile radius circle is created around the positive animal. And, if a POC is found to be positive for CWD, a 5-mile radius circle is created around the positive animal. Further, for both cases, the SSA extends to the entirety of the county of the infected animal and any county that the 15-mile or 5-mile circle touches. 

For a complete list of counties that are included within a particular SSA, please review the map below.


Livestock Diseases:

Disease Species Number of Animals

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) Cervid 46

Number of herds involved in special surveillance zones around CWD positive free-ranging deer 84 84 


MDARD CWD Confirmed at Farmed Deer Facilities in Mecosta and Montcalm Counties

... Rural Development (MDARD) has confirmed two cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) at two separate farmed deer facilities, one ... 123 free-ranging deer from Montcalm County. "Since chronic wasting disease can significantly impact all Michigan deer, it is ...


MDARD CWD Identified in Newaygo County Farmed Deer

... Agriculture and Rural and Development (MDARD) has confirmed chronic wasting disease (CWD) in three white-tailed deer from a ... rule out exposure of any other farmed deer. "Chronic wasting disease is a serious disease affecting both farmed and ...


MDARD CWD identified in a Montcalm County farmed deer

... Rural Development (MDARD) has confirmed a case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a four-year-old white-tailed ... 123 free-ranging deer in Montcalm County. "As chronic wasting disease affects both farmed and free-ranging deer, MDARD ...


Michigan CWD Confirmed at Farmed Deer Facilities in Mecosta and Montcalm Counties

CWD Confirmed at Farmed Deer Facilities in Mecosta and Montcalm Counties 

For immediate release: August 11, 2021 Media contact: Jennifer Holton, 517-284-5724

LANSING, MI - The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) has confirmed two cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) at two separate farmed deer facilities, one in Mecosta County and one in Montcalm County. The two infected deer, a two-year-old and a four-year-old, were discovered through routine testing as part of the state's CWD surveillance program for farmed deer.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose. The disease can be transmitted directly from one animal to another, as well as indirectly through the environment. While an infected deer may appear healthy for months or years, it will eventually display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss, and physical debilitation in the latter stages of the disease.

The presence of CWD in farmed and free-ranging deer is not new to Michigan. Since 2008, and including these new cases, CWD has been detected at eight Michigan deer farms in the following counties: Kent, Mecosta (3), Montcalm (3), and Newaygo.

With free-ranging deer, CWD was first discovered in May 2015, and cases have been found across nine counties in Michigan's Upper and Lower Peninsulas. To date, while no free-ranging white-tailed deer have tested positive for CWD in Mecosta County, the disease has been detected in 123 free-ranging deer from Montcalm County. 

"Since chronic wasting disease can significantly impact all Michigan deer, it is vitally important to detect the disease as early as possible," said State Veterinarian Nora Wineland, DVM. "Early detection allows MDARD and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to work in collaboration with farmers and hunters to stem the spread and manage this serious disease."

As part of MDARD's disease response, investigations are being conducted to rule out exposure to any other farmed deer.

Currently, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization recommend that infected animals should not be consumed as food by either humans or domestic animals.

More information about CWD can be found at Michigan.gov/CWD or Michigan.gov/MDARD-Cervid.

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CWD identified in a Montcalm County farmed deer 

For immediate release: March 12, 2021 Media contact: Jessy Sielski, 517-331-1151

LANSING, MI - The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) has confirmed a case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a four-year-old white-tailed deer from a Montcalm County deer farm. The case was found through samples that were submitted for routine testing as part of the state's CWD surveillance program for farmed deer.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose. CWD can be transmitted directly from one animal to another, as well as indirectly through the environment. While an infected deer may appear healthy for months or years, it will eventually display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss, and physical debilitation in the latter stages of the disease.

The discovery of CWD in farmed and free-ranging deer is not new to the state of Michigan. Since 2008, and including this new case, CWD has been detected at six Michigan deer farms in the following counties: Kent, Mecosta (2), Montcalm (2), and Newaygo.

With free-ranging deer, CWD was first discovered in May 2015, and cases have been found across nine counties in both the Upper and Lower Peninsulas. To date, CWD has been detected in 123 free-ranging deer in Montcalm County. 

"As chronic wasting disease affects both farmed and free-ranging deer, MDARD works in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the state's deer farmers to detect and manage this serious disease," said State Veterinarian Nora Wineland, DVM. "Due to the nature of the disease, it is imperative that farmers, hunters, DNR, and MDARD continue to work in collaboration to protect all of Michigan's deer."

As part of MDARD's disease response, an investigation will be conducted to rule out exposure of any other farmed deer.

Currently, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization recommend infected animals not be consumed as food by either humans or domestic animals.

More information about CWD can be found at Michigan.gov/CWD or Michigan.gov/MDARD-Cervid.

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APPENDIX A: 2020 REPORTABLE DISEASES

Livestock Diseases: 

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) Cervid 46 


CWD Identified in Newaygo County Farmed Deer 

For Immediate Release: January 14, 2020 Media Contact: Jessy Sielski, 517-284-5725

LANSING, MI - The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural and Development (MDARD) has confirmed chronic wasting disease (CWD) in three white-tailed deer from a Newaygo County deer farm. All three deer were four-and-a-half years old. The samples were submitted for routine testing as part of the state's CWD surveillance program for farmed deer.

To date, CWD has not been detected in free-ranging deer in Newaygo County. As part of MDARD's disease response, an investigation will be conducted to rule out exposure of any other farmed deer.

"Chronic wasting disease is a serious disease affecting both farmed and free-ranging deer," said State Veterinarian Nora Wineland, DVM. "MDARD and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources work together, in partnership with the state's deer farmers, to ensure the protection of all of Michigan's deer."

Since 2008, CWD has been detected in four additional privately-owned cervid facilities from Kent, Mecosta, and Montcalm Counties. The deer farm in Newaygo County is the fifth Michigan farm in which CWD has been detected.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose. CWD can be transmitted directly from one animal to another, as well as indirectly through the environment. Infected animals may display abnormal behavior, progressive weight loss and physical debilitation. To date, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization recommend that infected animals not be consumed as food by either humans or domestic animals.

More information about CWD can be found at Michigan.gov/CWD.





Greenville man charged with violating CWD deer requirements

By Elisabeth Waldon | on February 03, 2021

Eric Snyder

EUREKA TOWNSHIP — A Greenville man is facing half a dozen charges related to his alleged improper handling of deer with chronic wasting disease (CWD).

Eric David Snyder, 51, is charged with three counts of animal industry acts (privately owned cervidae) two counts of animal industry acts (felony violation) and one count of animals burial.

According to Montcalm County Prosecutor Andrea Krause, the alleged crimes occurred between March 2019 and February 2020. The Department of Natural Resources investigated, however, Snyder wasn’t charged until December 2020 and he wasn’t arraigned until Jan. 21. Krause said the coronavirus pandemic likely played a role in the delay.

According to Krause, Snyder owned Fieldview Whitetails, a deer farm/ranch in Eureka Township.

 “He had a deer test positive for CWD,” Krause said. “(Snyder) dumped the deer outside the farm in violation of the law. He also violated a quarantine of the other deer he had on his farm.”

A deer with CWD in Montcalm County was discovered in October 2017 and as a precaution in January 2018, all privately owned deer facilities were put into mandatory quarantine if they were within 15 miles of a deer that tested positive, according to Krause. In March 2019, a deer at Snyder’s farm was discovered to have CWD, and a follow-up investigation later that month discovered the alleged violations at the farm, according to Krause.

Snyder is being represented by attorney Jeff Crampton. If convicted, Snyder faces to from 90 days to five years prison and/or fines and costs.

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SUNDAY, JANUARY 22, 2023 

Michigan Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion Totals Since 2015 To Present 242 Confirmed Cases


MONDAY, JUNE 28, 2021 

Michigan Total CWD Positive/Suspect Positive Deer 209 Cases To Date


FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2020 

Michigan, to date, CWD TSE Prion has been detected in 197 cervid 


SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2020 

Michigan Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion increases to 191 positive to date


TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2020 

Michigan CWD TSE Prion 189 Positive To Date UPDATE September 2020


WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020 

Michigan CWD TSE Prion Total Suspect Positive Deer Moves Up To 188 with total deer tested 80,687 to date



THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2020 

Michigan CWD TSE Prion Total Suspect Positive Deer Jumps To 181 to date


MONDAY, JANUARY 27, 2020 

Michigan CWD TSE Prion MDARD 3 positive white-tailed deer from a Newaygo County deer farm depopulation and quarantine efforts update?


TUESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2020 

Michigan MDARD has confirmed chronic wasting disease (CWD) in 3 white-tailed deer from a Newaygo County deer farm


TUESDAY, JANUARY 07, 2020 

Michigan Total CWD TSE Prion Positive Suspect-Positive Deer Jump To 174 confirmed to date


THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2019 
Michigan Total CWD TSE Prion Positive Suspect-Positive Deer Jump To 162 confirmed to date


FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2019 

Michigan Total CWD TSE Prion Positive/Suspect-Positive Deer 140 To Date


WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2019 

Michigan Total CWD TSE Prion Positive, Suspect Positive, Deer 136 To Date


2019 CWD Testing Goals and Results as of October 18, 2019


THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2019 

Michigan DNR reports CWD-positive deer in Hamilton Township, Gratiot County


THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2019 

Michigan DNR reports CWD-positive deer in Hamilton Township, Gratiot County


SATURDAY, OCTOBER 05, 2019 

Michigan MSU SCIENTISTS ARE TESTING A FASTER WAY TO DETECT CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE


SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2019 

Michigan TWO MORE CWD TSE PRION POSITIVES Total Now At 124 Positive


TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 

Michigan House Bill 4687 State Legislators Turn To Draft Dodger Ted Nugent To Make Scientific Decisions over DNR on CWD TSE Prion


SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 2019 
Michigan Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion Two More Cases Total 122 To Date
THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2019 

Michigan Osceola County deer farm/ranch owner arraigned on several violations

THURSDAY, MAY 09, 2019 

Michigan CWD TSE Prion increases to 120 Cases to Date


THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2019 

Michigan CWD Identified in a Montcalm County Farmed Deer


March 30, 2018

Contact: Lt. David Shaw, 616-218-3762

Mecosta County man sentenced following DNR investigation

Game ranch owner falsified information related to chronic wasting disease testing

A Mecosta County game ranch owner has been sentenced on charges resulting from an investigation by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division, in cooperation with the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Lester Jay Gemmen, 64, of Morley was charged with providing false information regarding the origin of two deer heads that were submitted for disease testing, and for failing to properly maintain fencing at the Super G Ranch. The ranch is a privately owned cervid (POC) facility, a designation that includes game ranches and hunting ranches.

He was sentenced by the 77th District Court to 60 days in jail for each count, ordered to pay $775 in fines and costs and must perform 80 hours of community service.

The investigation began in 2017 after two of the six deer heads submitted by Gemmen tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD).

“I commend the detectives from our Special Investigations Unit and our field conservation officers for their thorough, professional approach to this investigation,” said 1st Lt. David Shaw, supervisor of the Special Investigations Unit of the DNR Law Enforcement Division.

The facility’s remaining deer were depopulated and tested, but no further evidence of CWD was found. The facility remains under quarantine, currently preventing ownership of farmed cervids.

The Privately Owned Cervid Program is jointly managed by the DNR and MDARD. There is mandatory CWD testing in all registered herds in Michigan, under the oversight of MDARD. The DNR oversees POC registration and performs inspections of POC facilities. Proper maintenance of POC facilities is critical to protecting Michigan’s free-ranging and privately owned cervid herds.

CWD is a fatal central nervous system disease that affects white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk and moose. It attacks the brain of infected animals, creating small lesions in the brain, which result in death. It is transmitted through direct animal-to-animal contact or by contact with saliva, urine, feces, blood, carcass parts of an infected animal or infected soil. To date, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans. However, as a precaution, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization recommend that infected animals not be consumed as food by humans or domestic animals.

Since May 2015, CWD-positive deer have been found in Michigan. As of mid-March 2018, 57 free-ranging deer have tested positive for the disease. CWD has not been found in the Upper Peninsula, though it has been discovered in Wisconsin, approximately 40 miles from the western Upper Peninsula border.

The DNR is working with stakeholders to address the status of CWD in Michigan. In the coming weeks, the DNR and the Michigan Natural Resources Commission will host a series of public engagement meetings across the state on CWD. The sessions will provide hunters, business owners and residents with opportunities to share their ideas and observations.

In addition, the DNR, NRC and MDARD are evaluating recommendations from the CWD Working Group, which was created after last year’s CWD Symposium. The symposium brought national and international experts to Michigan to discuss CWD. During the coming months, the DNR, NRC and MDARD will work with stakeholders to develop new CWD regulation recommendations.

Visit www.michigan.gov/cwd for more information about the disease, preventive measures and the public meeting schedule.


SATURDAY, MARCH 03, 2018 

Michigan-Sportsman.com Bans Terry S. Singeltary Sr. For Speaking about Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion 



THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2023 

TEXAS REPUBLICAN SB 1372 TAXPAYERS TO PAY FOR GAME FARMS CWD DEPOPULATION 


CWD Quarantines equal CWD time bomb waiting to go off, imo...terry

CWD TSE PrP Feces, Contagiousness, Zoonosis Potential?

Heterozygosity for cervid S138N polymorphism results in subclinical CWD in gene-targeted mice and progressive inhibition of prion conversion

HIGHLIGHT

However, prion seeding activity was detected in spleens, brains, and feces of these mice, suggesting subclinical infection accompanied by prion shedding.

Infected animals accumulate prions in lymphoreticular and other peripheral tissues, e.g., skeletal muscle, and shed infectious prions in saliva, urine and feces, contributing to direct and environmental transmission and rapidly increasing geographic distribution of CWD (9–12). 

However, prion-seeding activity was detectable in the brain, spleen, and feces, indicating subclinical infection and potential for contagiousness.


Heterozygosity for cervid S138N polymorphism results in subclinical CWD in gene-targeted mice and progressive inhibition of prion conversion

Maria I. Arifin https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2042-3492, Lech Kaczmarczyk https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2747-3134, Doris Zeng https://orcid.org/0009-0002-2512-6227, +7, and Sabine Gilch https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5923-3464 sgilch@ucalgary.caAuthors Info & Affiliations Edited by Reed Wickner, NIH, Bethesda, MD; 

received December 12, 2022; accepted March 6, 2023

April 4, 2023

120 (15) e2221060120


Significance

Amino acid substitutions within the cervid prion protein (PrP) can decrease susceptibility to chronic wasting disease, generally with more prominent effects in homozygous animals. Using novel gene-targeted mouse models expressing S138N reindeer/caribou PrP, we demonstrate subclinical infection with prion seeding activity in spleen and fecal prion shedding in heterozygous 138SN and homozygous 138NN mice. A lower percentage of heterozygous 138SN-PrP than homozygous 138NN-PrP expressing mice harbored seeding-efficient prions in tissues. This is caused by dominant-negative interference of the PrP variants occurring only if they are coexpressed. Our findings are relevant to inform conservation efforts for caribou, an endangered species in North America. Furthermore, our study provides new mechanistic insights into genetic resistance and dominant-negative interference of conversion-competent PrP variants.

Abstract

Prions are proteinaceous infectious particles that replicate by structural conversion of the host-encoded cellular prion protein (PrPC), causing fatal neurodegenerative diseases in mammals. Species-specific amino acid substitutions (AAS) arising from single nucleotide polymorphisms within the prion protein gene (Prnp) modulate prion disease pathogenesis, and, in several instances, reduce susceptibility of homo- or heterozygous AAS carriers to prion infection. However, a mechanistic understanding of their protective effects against clinical disease is missing. We generated gene-targeted mouse infection models of chronic wasting disease (CWD), a highly contagious prion disease of cervids. These mice express wild-type deer or PrPC harboring the S138N substitution homo- or heterozygously, a polymorphism found exclusively in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus spp.) and fallow deer (Dama dama). The wild-type deer PrP-expressing model recapitulated CWD pathogenesis including fecal shedding. Encoding at least one 138N allele prevented clinical CWD, accumulation of protease-resistant PrP (PrPres) and abnormal PrP deposits in the brain tissue. However, prion seeding activity was detected in spleens, brains, and feces of these mice, suggesting subclinical infection accompanied by prion shedding. 138N-PrPC was less efficiently converted to PrPres in vitro than wild-type deer (138SS) PrPC. Heterozygous coexpression of wild-type deer and 138N-PrPC resulted in dominant-negative inhibition and progressively diminished prion conversion over serial rounds of protein misfolding cyclic amplification. Our study indicates that heterozygosity at a polymorphic Prnp codon can confer the highest protection against clinical CWD and highlights the potential role of subclinical carriers in CWD transmission.

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To conclude, our study demonstrates that CWD-infected animals harboring S138N PrP might be “silent spreaders” of CWD prions and highlights the importance of lymphatic tissues in the detection of CWD, particularly in caribou, even in the absence of clinical manifestation. It is important to keep in mind that even protective genotypes may be permissive to certain minor or newly emerging CWD strains. Our results provide new mechanistic insights into dominant-negative inhibition of prion conversion, the tissue specificity of this effect, and suggests that PrPC primary structure is a determinant for tissue-specific prion replication.


Published: 22 August 2022

Transmission of cervid prions to humanized mice demonstrates the zoonotic potential of CWD

Samia Hannaoui, Irina Zemlyankina, Sheng Chun Chang, Maria Immaculata Arifin, Vincent Béringue, Debbie McKenzie, Hermann M. Schatzl & Sabine Gilch 

Acta Neuropathologica volume 144, pages767–784 (2022)

Inoculation of these mice with deer CWD isolates resulted in atypical clinical manifestation with prion seeding activity and efficient transmissible infectivity in the brain and, remarkably, in feces, but without classical neuropathological or Western blot appearances of prion diseases.

In contrast, in cervids affected with CWD, infectivity has been found in the lymphatic system, salivary gland, intestinal tract, muscles, antler velvet, blood, urine, saliva, and feces [4], which have been demonstrated to be transmissible [57]. 

These data demonstrate that humanized tg650 mice inoculated with CWD prions shed prion infectivity in feces able to generate transmissible PrPSc in bank voles distinct from those generated by inoculation of the Wisc-1 deer isolate directly to bank voles.

Our findings strongly suggest that CWD should be regarded as an actual public health risk. Here, we use humanized mice to show that CWD prions can cross the species barrier to humans, and remarkably, infectious prions can be excreted in feces.

The presence of infectious prions shed in feces is one argument in favor of the existence of de novo generated PrPSc in these mice.

CWD in humans might remain subclinical but with PrPSc deposits in the brain with an unusual morphology that does not resemble the patterns usually seen in different prion diseases (e.g., mouse #328; Fig. 3), clinical with untraceable abnormal PrP (e.g., mouse #327) but still transmissible and uncovered upon subsequent passage (e.g., mouse #3063; Fig. 4), or prions have other reservoirs than the usual ones, hence the presence of infectivity in feces (e.g., mouse #327) suggesting a potential for human-to-human transmission and a real iatrogenic risk that might be unrecognizable. Here, humanized mice inoculated with CWD deer isolates had an atypical onset of the disease with myoclonus (93.75%), before presenting typical clinical signs, generating prions that presented with either atypical biochemical signature (#321 and #3063), shed in feces (#327), or were undetectable by the classical detection methods.

The finding that infectious PrPSc was shed in fecal material of CWD-infected humanized mice and induced clinical disease, different tropism, and typical three banding pattern-PrPres in bank voles that is transmissible upon second passage is highly concerning for public health. The fact that this biochemical signature in bank voles resembles that of the Wisc-1 original deer isolate and is different from that of bvWisc-1, in the migration profile and the glyco-form-ratio, is valid evidence that these results are not a product of contamination in our study. If CWD in humans is found to be contagious and transmissible among humans, as it is in cervids [57], the spread of the disease within humans might become endemic. In contrast to bank voles inoculated with fecal homogenates from mouse #327, so far, we could not detect a PK-resistant PrPSc fragment in the brain homogenates of fecal homogenate-inoculated tg650 mice. The presence of PrPres in these mice will allow us to determine if the molecular signature of hCWD prions from the brain (mouse #321 and #3063) vs feces are the same. Previously, Beringue et al. found that extraneural prions, compared to neural prions, helped more to overcome the species barrier to foreign prions, in addition, different strain types emerged from such serial transmission [11]. Our data also suggest that prions found in the periphery may hold higher zoonotic potential than prions found in neural tissues. In fact, upon second passage, 50% of the tg650 mice inoculated with fecal homogenates from mouse #327 had succumbed with terminal disease compared to only 20% of brain/spinal cord homogenates inoculated-tg650 mice suggesting that hCWD prions found in feces transmit disease more efficiently. Our results also suggest that epidemiological studies [25] may have missed subclinical and atypical infections that are/might be transmissible, undetected by the gold standard tests, i.e., Western blot, ELISA, and IHC.

Overall, our findings suggest that CWD surveillance in humans should encompass a wider spectrum of tissues/organs tested and include new criteria in the diagnosis of potential patients.

Saturday, April 9, 2022 

EFSA EU Request for a scientific opinion on the monitoring of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) EFSA-Q-2022-00114 M-2022-00040 Singeltary Submission
 
Chronic wasting disease detection in environmental and biological samples from a taxidermy site
Paulina Sotoa,b, J. Hunter Reedc, Mitch Lockwoodc, and Rodrigo Moralesa,b
aDepartment of Neurology, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas, USA; bUniversidad Bernardo O’Higgins, Santiago, Chile; cTexas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas, USA
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy affecting captive and free-ranging cervids (e.g., mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, reindeer, and moose). Nowadays, CWD is widely distributed in North America. It is suggested that CWD spreads due to direct animal contact or through exposure to contaminated environments previously inhabited by infected animals. CWD may also be spread through the movement of infected animals and carcasses. Taxidermy practices involve processing deer tissues (or whole animal carcasses). In many cases, the CWD status of processed animals is unknown. This can generate risks of disease spread and transmission. Taxidermy practices include different steps involving physical, chemical, and biological procedures. Without proper tissue handling or disposal practices, taxidermist facilities may become a focus of prion infectivity.
Aims: In this study, we evaluated the presence of infectious prions in a taxidermy facility believed to be exposed to CWD. Detection was performed using the Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) technique in biological and inert environmental samples.
Methods: We collected biological and environmental samples (plants, soils, insects, excreta, and others) from a taxidermy facility, and we tested these samples using the PMCA technique. In addition, we swabbed different surfaces possibly exposed to CWD-infected animals. For the PMCA reaction, we directly used a swab piece or 10 µL of 20% w/v homogenized samples.
Results: The PMCA analysis demonstrated CWD seeding activity in some of the components of this facility, including insects involved in head processing, soils, and a trash dumpster.
Conclusions: Different areas of this property were used for various taxidermy procedures. We were able to detect the presence of prions in i) soils that were in contact with the heads of dead animals, ii) insects involved in the cleaning of skulls, and iii) an empty dumpster where animal carcasses were previously placed. This is the first report demonstrating that swabbing is a helpful method to screen for prion infectivity on surfaces potentially contaminated with CWD. These findings are relevant as this swabbing and amplification strategy may be used to evaluate the disease status of other free-ranging and captive settings where there is a concern for CWD transmissions, such as at feeders and water troughs with CWD-exposed properties. This approach could have substantial implications for free-ranging cervid surveillance as well as in epidemiological investigations of CWD.
Funded by: USDA
Grant number: AP20VSSPRS00C143
PRION 2022 ABSTRACTS, AND A BIG THANK YOU TO 
On behalf of the Prion2020/2022 Congress Organizing Committee and the NeuroPrion Association, we heartily invite you to join us for the International Conference Prion2020/2022 from 13.-16. September 2022 in Göttingen.

Prion 2022 Conference abstracts: pushing the boundaries


Large-scale PMCA screening of retropharyngeal lymph nodes and in white-tailed deer and comparisons with ELISA and IHC: the Texas CWD study

Rebeca Benaventea, Paulina Sotoa, Mitch Lockwoodb, and Rodrigo Moralesa aDepartment of Neurology, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas, USA; bTexas Park and Wildlife Department, Texas, USA

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that affects various species of cervids, and both free-ranging and captive animals. Until now, CWD has been detected in 3 continents: North America, Europe, and Asia. CWD prevalence in some states may reach 30% of total animals. In Texas, the first case of CWD was reported in a free-range mule deer in Hudspeth and now it has been detected in additional 14 counties. Currently, the gold standard techniques used for CWD screening and detection are ELISA and immunohistochemistry (IHC) of obex and retropharyngeal lymph nodes (RPLN). Unfortunately, these methods are known for having a low diagnostic sensitivity. Hence, many CWD-infected animals at pre-symptomatic stages may be misdiagnosed. Two promising in vitro prion amplification techniques, including the real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) and the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) have been used to diagnose CWD and other prion diseases in several tissues and bodily fluids. Considering the low cost and speed of RT-QuIC, two recent studies have communicated the potential of this technique to diagnose CWD prions in RPLN samples. Unfortunately, the data presented in these articles suggest that identification of CWD positive samples is comparable to the currently used ELISA and IHC protocols. Similar studies using the PMCA technique have not been reported.

Aims: Compare the CWD diagnostic potential of PMCA with ELISA and IHC in RPLN samples from captive and free-range white-tailed deer. Material and Methods: In this study we analyzed 1,003 RPLN from both free-ranging and captive white-tailed deer collected in Texas. Samples were interrogated with the PMCA technique for their content of CWD prions. PMCA data was compared with the results obtained through currently approved techniques.

Results: Our results show a 15-fold increase in CWD detection in free-range deer compared with ELISA. Our results unveil the presence of prion infected animals in Texas counties with no previous history of CWD. In the case of captive deer, we detected a 16% more CWD positive animals when compared with IHC. Interestingly, some of these positive samples displayed differences in their electroforetic mobilities, suggesting the presence of different prion strains within the State of Texas.

Conclusions: PMCA sensitivity is significantly higher than the current gold standards techniques IHC and ELISA and would be a good tool for rapid CWD screening.

Funded by: USDA

Grant number: AP20VSSPRS00C143

PRION 2022 ABSTRACTS, AND A BIG THANK YOU TO On behalf of the Prion2020/2022 Congress Organizing Committee and the NeuroPrion Association, we heartily invite you to join us for the International Conference Prion2020/2022 from 13.-16. September 2022 in Göttingen.

Prion 2022 Conference abstracts: pushing the boundaries


Shedding of Chronic Wasting Disease Prions in Multiple Excreta Throughout Disease Course in White-tailed Deer

Nathaniel D. Denkersa, Erin E. McNultya, Caitlyn N. Krafta, Amy V. Nallsa, Joseph A. Westricha, Wilfred Goldmannb, Candace K. Mathiasona, and Edward A. Hoovera

aPrion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biological Sciences, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology; Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA; bDivision of Infection and Immunity, The Roslin Institute and the Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, UK

Aims: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) now infects cervids in South Korea, North America, and Scandinavia. CWD is unique in its efficient transmission and shedding of prions in body fluids throughout long course infections. Questions remain as to the magnitude of shedding and the route of prion acquisition. As CWD continues to expand, the need to better understand these facets of disease becomes more pertinent. The purpose of the studies described was to define the longitudinal shedding profile of CWD prions in urine, saliva, and feces throughout the course of infection in white-tailed deer.

Material and Methods: Twelve (12) white-tailed deer were inoculated with either 1 mg or 300ng of CWD. Urine, saliva, and feces were collected every 3-month post-inoculation (MPI) throughout the study duration. Cohorts were established based on PNRP genotype: codon 96 GG (n = 6) and alternate codons 96 GS (n = 5) & 103NT (n = 1). Urine and saliva were analyzed using iron-oxide magnetic extraction (IOME) and real-time quaking induced conversion (RT-QuIC)(IQ). Feces were subjected to IOME, followed by 4 rounds protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) with products analyzed by RT-QuIC (IPQ). To determine whether IPQ may be superior to IQ, a subset of urine and saliva were also tested by IPQ. Results were compared with clinical disease status.

Results: Within the 96 GG cohort, positive seeding activity was detected in feces from all deer (100%), in saliva from 5 of 6 (83%), and in urine from 4 of 6 (66%). Shedding in all excreta occurred at, or just after, the first positive tonsil biopsy result. In the 96 GS/103NT cohort, positive seeding activity could be detected in feces from 3 of 6 (50%) deer, saliva in 2 of 6 (33%), and urine in 1 of 6 (16%). Shedding in excreta was detected >5 months after the first tonsil positive result. Four of six 96 GG deer developed clinical signs of CWD, whereas only 2 of the 96 GS/103NT did. Shedding was more frequently detected in deer with clinical disease. The IPQ protocol did not significantly improve detection in saliva or urine samples, however, it significantly augmented detection in feces by eliminating non-specific background commonly experienced with IQ. Negative control samples remained negative in samples tested.

Conclusions: These studies demonstrate: (a) CWD prion excretion occurs throughout infection; (2) PRNP genotype (GG≫GS/NT) influences the excreta shedding; and (3) detection sensitivity in excreta can vary with different RT-QuIC protocols. These results provide a more complete perspective of prion shedding in deer during the course of CWD infection.

Funded by: National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Grant number: RO1-NS061902-09 R to EAH, PO1-AI077774 to EAH, and R01-AI112956-06 to CKM

Acknowledgement: We abundantly thank Sallie Dahmes at WASCO and David Osborn and Gino D’Angelo at the University of Georgia Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources for their long-standing support of this work through provision of the hand-raised, CWD-free, white-tailed deer used in these studies

Carrot plants as potential vectors for CWD transmission

Paulina Sotoa,b, Francisca Bravo-Risia,b, Claudio Sotoa, and Rodrigo Moralesa,b

aDepartment of Neurology, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas, USA; bUniversidad Bernardo O’Higgins, Santiago, Chile

Prion diseases are infectious neurodegenerative disorders afflicting humans and other mammals. These diseases are generated by the misfolding of the cellular prion protein into a disease-causing isoform. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prevalent prion disease affecting cervids (captive and free-range). CWD is thought to be transmitted through direct animal contact or by indirect exposure to contaminated environments. Many studies have shown that infectious prions can enter the environment through saliva, feces, or urine from infected animals and decaying carcasses. However, we do not fully understand the specific contribution of each component to disease transmission events. Plants are logical environmental components to be evaluated since they grow in environments contaminated with CWD prions and are relevant for animal and human nutrition.

Aims: The main objective of this study is to study whether prions are transported to the roots and leaves of carrots, an edible plant commonly used in the human diet and as deer bait.

Methods: We have grown carrot plants in CWD-infected soils. After 90 days, we harvested the carrots and separated them from the leaves. The experiment was controlled by growing plants in soil samples treated with brain extracts from healthy animals. These materials were interrogated for their prion seeding activity using the Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) technique. Infectivity was evaluated in mouse bioassays (intracerebral injections in Tg1536 mice). The animals were sacrificed when they showed established signs of prion disease. Animals not displaying clinical signs were sacrificed at 600 days post-inoculation.

Results: The PMCA analysis demonstrated CWD seeding activity in soils contaminated with CWD prions, as well as in carrot plants (leaves and roots) grown on them. Bioassays demonstrated that both leaves and roots contained CWD prions in sufficient quantities to induce disease (92% attack rate). As expected, animals treated with prion-infected soils developed prion disease at shorter incubation periods (and complete attack rates) compared to plant components. Animals treated with soil and plant components exposed with CWD-free brain extracts did not display prion-associated clinical signs or evidence of sub-clinical prion infection.

Conclusions: We show that edible plant components can absorb prions from CWD contaminated soils and transport them to their aerial parts. Our results indicate that plants could participate as vectors of CWD transmission. Importantly, plants designated for human consumption represent a risk of introducing CWD prions into the human food chain.

Funded by: NIH

Grant number: R01AI132695


October 6th-12th, 126th Meeting 2022 Resolutions 

RESOLUTION NUMBER: 30 Approved

SOURCE: COMMITTEE ON WILDLIFE

SUBJECT MATTER: Chronic Wasting Disease Carcass Disposal Dumpster Management and Biosecurity

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

State and tribal wildlife agencies may identify collection points (dumpsters) within an identified chronic wasting disease (CWD) management zone for the disposal of hunter-harvested cervid carcasses to remove potentially infected carcasses off the landscape for disposal by an approved method (Gillin & Mawdsley, 2018, chap.14). However, depending on their placement and maintenance these dumpsters could potentially increase the risk of CWD transmission.

In several different states, photographic evidence has shown dumpsters in state identified CWD management zones overflowing with deer carcasses and limbs scattered on the land nearby. This could provide an opportunity for scavengers to potentially move infected carcass material to non-infected zones or increase contamination of the ground material around the dumpster’s location.

Federal guidance does not explicitly address uniform standards for collection locations for carcasses of free-ranging cervids; however, the United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services Program Standards on CWD outlines procedures for carcass disposal, equipment sanitation, and decontamination of premises for captive cervid facilities.

RESOLUTION:

The United States Animal Health Association urges the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA), Wildlife Health Committee to further refine the AFWA Technical Report on Best Management Practices for Prevention, Surveillance, and Management of Chronic Wasting Disease; Chapter 14, Carcass Disposal to address the placement and management of chronic wasting disease carcass disposal dumpsters or other carcass collection containers.

Reference:

1. Gillin, Colin M., and Mawdsley, Jonathan R. (eds.). 2018. AFWA Technical Report on Best Management Practices for Surveillance, Management and Control of Chronic Wasting Disease. Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Washington, D. C. 111 pp. 


ENVIRONMENT FACTORS FOR THE TRANSMISSION OF CWD TSE PRP

Sensitive detection of chronic wasting disease prions recovered from environmentally relevant surfaces

Environment International

Available online 13 June 2022, 107347

Environment International

Sensitive detection of chronic wasting disease prions recovered from environmentally relevant surfaces

Qi Yuana Gag e Rowdenb Tiffany M.Wolfc Marc D.Schwabenlanderb Peter A.LarsenbShannon L.Bartelt-Huntd Jason C.Bartza

a Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska, 68178, United States of America

b Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, United States of America

c Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, United States of America

d Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Peter Kiewit Institute, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Omaha, Nebraska, 68182, United States of America

Received 26 April 2022, Revised 8 June 2022, Accepted 9 June 2022, Available online 13 June 2022.


Get rights and content

Under a Creative Commons license Open access

Highlights • An innovative method for prion recovery from swabs was developed.

• Recovery of prions decreased as swab-drying time was increased.

• Recovery of CWD prions from stainless steel and glass was approximately 30%.

• RT-QuIC enhanced CWD prion detection by 4 orders of magnitude.

• Surface-recovered CWD prion was sufficient for efficient RT-QuIC detection. 

Abstract

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) has been identified in 30 states in the United States, four provinces in Canada, and recently emerged in Scandinavia. The association of CWD prions with environmental materials such as soil, plants, and surfaces may enhance the persistence of CWD prion infectivity in the environment exacerbating disease transmission. Identifying and quantifying CWD prions in the environment is significant for prion monitoring and disease transmission control. A systematic method for CWD prion quantification from associated environmental materials, however, does not exist. In this study, we developed an innovative method for extracting prions from swabs and recovering CWD prions swabbed from different types of surfaces including glass, stainless steel, and wood. We found that samples dried on swabs were unfavorable for prion extraction, with the greatest prion recovery from wet swabs. Using this swabbing technique, the recovery of CWD prions dried to glass or stainless steel was approximately 30% in most cases, whereas that from wood was undetectable by conventional prion immunodetection techniques. Real-time quake-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) analysis of these same samples resulted in an increase of the detection limit of CWD prions from stainless steel by 4 orders of magnitude. More importantly, the RT-QuIC detection of CWD prions recovered from stainless steel surfaces using this method was similar to the original CWD prion load applied to the surface. This combined surface swabbing and RT-QuIC detection method provides an ultrasensitive means for prion detection across many settings and applications.

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5. Conclusions

Chronic wasting disease is spreading in North America and it is hypothesized that in CWD-endemic areas environmental persistence of CWD prions can exacerbate disease transmission. The development of a sensitive CWD prion detection method from environmentally relevant surfaces is significant for monitoring, risk assessment, and control of CWD. In this study, we developed a novel swab-extraction procedure for field deployable sampling of CWD prions from stainless steel, glass, and wood. We found that extended swab-drying was unfavorable for extraction, indicating that hydrated storage of swabs after sampling aided in prion recovery. Recoverable CWD prions from stainless steel and glass was approximately 30%, which was greater than from wood. RT-QuIC analysis of the swab extracts resulted in an increase of the detection limit of CWD prions from stainless steel by 4 orders of magnitude compared to conventional immunodetection techniques. More importantly, the RT-QuIC detection of CWD prions recovered from stainless steel surfaces using this developed method was similar to the original CWD prion load without surface contact. This method of prion sampling and recovery, in combination with ultrasensitive detection methods, allows for prion detection from contaminated environmental surfaces.


Research Paper

Cellular prion protein distribution in the vomeronasal organ, parotid, and scent glands of white-tailed deer and mule deer

Anthony Ness, Aradhana Jacob, Kelsey Saboraki, Alicia Otero, Danielle Gushue, Diana Martinez Moreno, Melanie de Peña, Xinli Tang, Judd Aiken, Susan Lingle & Debbie McKenzie ORCID Icon show less

Pages 40-57 | Received 03 Feb 2022, Accepted 13 May 2022, Published online: 29 May 2022

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ABSTRACT

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a contagious and fatal transmissible spongiform encephalopathy affecting species of the cervidae family. CWD has an expanding geographic range and complex, poorly understood transmission mechanics. CWD is disproportionately prevalent in wild male mule deer and male white-tailed deer. Sex and species influences on CWD prevalence have been hypothesized to be related to animal behaviours that involve deer facial and body exocrine glands. Understanding CWD transmission potential requires a foundational knowledge of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) in glands associated with cervid behaviours. In this study, we characterized the presence and distribution of PrPC in six integumentary and two non-integumentary tissues of hunter-harvested mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (O. virginianus). We report that white-tailed deer expressed significantly more PrPC than their mule deer in the parotid, metatarsal, and interdigital glands. Females expressed more PrPC than males in the forehead and preorbital glands. The distribution of PrPC within the integumentary exocrine glands of the face and legs were localized to glandular cells, hair follicles, epidermis, and immune cell infiltrates. All tissues examined expressed sufficient quantities of PrPC to serve as possible sites of prion initial infection, propagation, and shedding.

KEYWORDS: Prion chronic wasting diseasesex differences species differences disease prevalence cervid protein expression glands


Paper

Rapid recontamination of a farm building occurs after attempted prion removal

Kevin Christopher Gough BSc (Hons), PhD Claire Alison Baker BSc (Hons) Steve Hawkins MIBiol Hugh Simmons BVSc, MRCVS, MBA, MA Timm Konold DrMedVet, PhD, MRCVS … See all authors 

First published: 19 January 2019 https://doi.org/10.1136/vr.105054

 The data illustrates the difficulty in decontaminating farm buildings from scrapie, and demonstrates the likely contribution of farm dust to the recontamination of these environments to levels that are capable of causing disease.

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This study clearly demonstrates the difficulty in removing scrapie infectivity from the farm environment. Practical and effective prion decontamination methods are still urgently required for decontamination of scrapie infectivity from farms that have had cases of scrapie and this is particularly relevant for scrapiepositive goatherds, which currently have limited genetic resistance to scrapie within commercial breeds.24 This is very likely to have parallels with control efforts for CWD in cervids.


***>This is very likely to have parallels with control efforts for CWD in cervids.


***> Infectious agent of sheep scrapie may persist in the environment for at least 16 years

***> Nine of these recurrences occurred 14–21 years after culling, apparently as the result of environmental contamination, but outside entry could not always be absolutely excluded. 

JOURNAL OF GENERAL VIROLOGY Volume 87, Issue 12

Infectious agent of sheep scrapie may persist in the environment for at least 16 years Free

Gudmundur Georgsson1, Sigurdur Sigurdarson2, Paul Brown3


Front. Vet. Sci., 14 September 2015 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2015.00032

Objects in contact with classical scrapie sheep act as a reservoir for scrapie transmission

imageTimm Konold1*, imageStephen A. C. Hawkins2, imageLisa C. Thurston3, imageBen C. Maddison4, imageKevin C. Gough5, imageAnthony Duarte1 and imageHugh A. Simmons1

The findings of this study highlight the role of field furniture used by scrapie-infected sheep to act as a reservoir for disease re-introduction although infectivity declines considerably if the field furniture has not been in contact with scrapie-infected sheep for several months. PMCA may not be as sensitive as VRQ/VRQ sheep to test for environmental contamination.

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Discussion 

snip...

In conclusion, the results in the current study indicate that removal of furniture that had been in contact with scrapie-infected animals should be recommended, particularly since cleaning and decontamination may not effectively remove scrapie infectivity (31), even though infectivity declines considerably if the pasture and the field furniture have not been in contact with scrapie-infected sheep for several months. As sPMCA failed to detect PrPSc in furniture that was subjected to weathering, even though exposure led to infection in sheep, this method may not always be reliable in predicting the risk of scrapie infection through environmental contamination. 


***> 172. Establishment of PrPCWD extraction and detection methods in the farm soil

Kyung Je Park, Hoo Chang Park, In Soon Roh, Hyo Jin Kim, Hae-Eun Kang and Hyun Joo Sohn

Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Korea

Conclusions: Our studies showed that PrPCWD persist in 0.001% CWD contaminated soil for at least 4 year and natural CWD-affected farm soil. When cervid reintroduced into CWD outbreak farm, the strict decontamination procedures of the infectious agent should be performed in the environment of CWD-affected cervid habitat.


THE tse prion aka mad cow type disease is not your normal pathogen. 

The TSE prion disease survives ashing to 600 degrees celsius, that’s around 1112 degrees farenheit. 

you cannot cook the TSE prion disease out of meat. 

you can take the ash and mix it with saline and inject that ash into a mouse, and the mouse will go down with TSE. 

Prion Infected Meat-and-Bone Meal Is Still Infectious after Biodiesel Production as well. 

the TSE prion agent also survives Simulated Wastewater Treatment Processes. 

IN fact, you should also know that the TSE Prion agent will survive in the environment for years, if not decades. 

you can bury it and it will not go away. 

The TSE agent is capable of infected your water table i.e. Detection of protease-resistant cervid prion protein in water from a CWD-endemic area. 

it’s not your ordinary pathogen you can just cook it out and be done with. 

***> that’s what’s so worrisome about Iatrogenic mode of transmission, a simple autoclave will not kill this TSE prion agent.

1: J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1994 Jun;57(6):757-8 

***> Transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease to a chimpanzee by electrodes contaminated during neurosurgery. 

Gibbs CJ Jr, Asher DM, Kobrine A, Amyx HL, Sulima MP, Gajdusek DC. 

Laboratory of Central Nervous System Studies, National Institute of 

Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, 

Bethesda, MD 20892. 

Stereotactic multicontact electrodes used to probe the cerebral cortex of a middle aged woman with progressive dementia were previously implicated in the accidental transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) to two younger patients. The diagnoses of CJD have been confirmed for all three cases. More than two years after their last use in humans, after three cleanings and repeated sterilisation in ethanol and formaldehyde vapour, the electrodes were implanted in the cortex of a chimpanzee. Eighteen months later the animal became ill with CJD. This finding serves to re-emphasise the potential danger posed by reuse of instruments contaminated with the agents of spongiform encephalopathies, even after scrupulous attempts to clean them. 

PMID: 8006664 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] 


New studies on the heat resistance of hamster-adapted scrapie agent: Threshold survival after ashing at 600°C suggests an inorganic template of replication 


Prion Infected Meat-and-Bone Meal Is Still Infectious after Biodiesel Production 


MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2021

Evaluation of the application for new alternative biodiesel production process for rendered fat including Category 1 animal by-products (BDI-RepCat® process, AT) ???


Detection of protease-resistant cervid prion protein in water from a CWD-endemic area 


A Quantitative Assessment of the Amount of Prion Diverted to Category 1 Materials and Wastewater During Processing 


Rapid assessment of bovine spongiform encephalopathy prion inactivation by heat treatment in yellow grease produced in the industrial manufacturing process of meat and bone meals 


THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2019 

BSE infectivity survives burial for five years with only limited spread


5 or 6 years quarantine is NOT LONG ENOUGH FOR CWD TSE PRION !!!

QUARANTINE NEEDS TO BE 21 YEARS FOR CWD TSE PRION !

FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 2021 

Should Property Evaluations Contain Scrapie, CWD, TSE PRION Environmental Contamination of the land?

***> Confidential!!!!

***> As early as 1992-3 there had been long studies conducted on small pastures containing scrapie infected sheep at the sheep research station associated with the Neuropathogenesis Unit in Edinburgh, Scotland. Whether these are documented...I don't know. But personal recounts both heard and recorded in a daily journal indicate that leaving the pastures free and replacing the topsoil completely at least 2 feet of thickness each year for SEVEN years....and then when very clean (proven scrapie free) sheep were placed on these small pastures.... the new sheep also broke out with scrapie and passed it to offspring. I am not sure that TSE contaminated ground could ever be free of the agent!! A very frightening revelation!!!

---end personal email---end...tss

and so it seems...

Scrapie Agent (Strain 263K) Can Transmit Disease via the Oral Route after Persistence in Soil over Years

Published: May 9, 2007

snip...

Our results showed that 263K scrapie agent can persist in soil at least over 29 months. Strikingly, not only the contaminated soil itself retained high levels of infectivity, as evidenced by oral administration to Syrian hamsters, but also feeding of aqueous soil extracts was able to induce disease in the reporter animals. We could also demonstrate that PrPSc in soil, extracted after 21 months, provides a catalytically active seed in the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) reaction. PMCA opens therefore a perspective for considerably improving the detectability of prions in soil samples from the field.

snip...


Dr. Paul Brown Scrapie Soil Test BSE Inquiry Document




Published: 06 September 2021

***> Chronic wasting disease: a cervid prion infection looming to spillover

Alicia Otero, Camilo Duque Velásquez, Judd Aiken & Debbie McKenzie 

Veterinary Research volume 52, Article number: 115 (2021) 


PRION CONFERENCE 2022 ABSTRACTS CWD TSE PrP ZOONOSIS 

Transmission of prion infectivity from CWD-infected macaque tissues to rodent models demonstrates the zoonotic potential of chronic wasting disease.

Samia Hannaouia, Ginny Chenga, Wiebke Wemheuerb, Walter J. Schulz-Schaefferb, Sabine Gilcha, and Hermann M. Schätzla aDepartment of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine & Hotchkiss Brain Institute; University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; bInstitute of Neuropathology, Medical Faculty, Saarland University, Homburg/Saar, Germany

Aims: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease of cervids. Its rapid geographic expansion, shedding of infectivity and persistence in the environment for many years are of concern for humans. Here, we provide the first evidence by transmission experiments to different transgenic mouse models and bank voles that Cynomolgus macaques inoculated via different routes with CWD-positive cervid tissues harbor infectious prions that elicit clinical disease in rodents.

Material and Methods: We used tissue materials from macaques inoculated with CWD to inoculate transgenic mice overexpressing cervid PrPCfollowed by transmission into bank voles. We used RT-QuIC, immunoblot and PET blot analysis to assess brains, spinal cords, and tissues of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) for the presence of prions.

Results: Our results show that of the macaque materials that induced clinical disease in transgenic mice,73% were from the CNS (46% spinal cord and 27% brain), and 27% were from the spleen, although attack rates were low around 20%. Clinical mice did not display PK-resistant PrPSc(PrPres) in immunoblot, but showed low-levels of prion seeding activity. Transmission into bank voles from clinical transgenic mice led to a 100% attack rate with typical PrPressignature in immunoblot, which was different from that of voles inoculated directly with CWD or scrapie prions. High-level prion seeding activity in brain and spinal cord and PrPresdeposition in the brain were present. Remarkably, we also found prion seeding activity in GIT tissues of inoculated voles. Second passage in bank voles led to a 100% attack rate in voles inoculated with brain, spinal cord and small intestine material from first round animals, with PrPresin immunoblot, prion seeding activity, and PrPresdeposition in the brain. Shortened survival times indicate adaptation in the new host. This also shows that prions detected in GIT tissues are infectious and transmissible. Transmission of brain material from sick voles back to cervidized mice revealed transmission in these mice with a 100% attack rate, and interestingly, with different biochemical signature and distribution in the brain.

Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that macaques, considered the best model for the zoonotic potential of prions, were infected upon CWD challenge, including oral one. The disease manifested as atypical in macaques and transgenic mice, but with infectivity present at all times, as unveiled in the bank vole model with an unusual tissue tropism.

Funded by: The National Institutes of Health, USA, and the Alberta Prion Research Institute/Alberta Innovates Canada. Grant number: 1R01NS121016-01; 201,600,023

Acknowledgement: We thank Umberto Agrimi, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy, and Michael Beekes, Robert-Koch Institute Berlin, Germany, for providing the bank vole model. We thank the University of Calgary animal facility staff and Dr. Stephanie Anderson for animal care.

Transmission of Cervid Prions to Humanized Mice Demonstrates the Zoonotic Potential of CWD

Samia Hannaouia, Irina Zemlyankinaa, Sheng Chun Changa, Maria Immaculata Arifina, Vincent Béringueb, Debbie McKenziec, Hermann M. Schatzla, and Sabine Gilcha

aDepartment of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine; Hotchkiss Brain Institute; University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; bUniversité Paris-Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France; cDepartment of Biological Sciences, Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada

Aims: Chronic wasting disease (CWD), a prion disease of cervids, spreads efficiently among wild and farmed animals. Potential transmission to humans of CWD is a growing concern due to its increasing prevalence. Here, we aimed to determine the zoonotic potential of CWD using a mouse model for human prion diseases.

Material and Methods: Transgenic mice overexpressing human PrPChomozygous for methionine at codon 129 (tg650) were inoculated intracerebrally with brain homogenates of white-tailed deer infected with Wisc-1/CWD1 or 116AG CWD strains. Mice were monitored for clinical signs and were euthanized at terminal disease. Brains were tested by RT-QuIC, western blot upon PK digestion, and immunohistochemistry; fecal homogenates were analyzed by RT-QuIC. Brain/spinal cord and fecal homogenates of CWD-inoculated tg650 mice were inoculated into tg650 mice or bank voles. Brain homogenates of bank voles inoculated with fecal homogenates of CWD-infected tg650 mice were used for second passage in bank voles.

Results: Here, we provide the strongest evidence supporting the zoonotic potential of CWD prions, and their possible phenotype in humans. Inoculation of mice expressing human PrPCwith deer CWD isolates (strains Wisc-1 and 116AG) resulted in atypical clinical manifestations in > 75% of the mice, with myoclonus as leading clinical sign. Most of tg650 brain homogenates were positive for seeding activity in RT-QuIC. Clinical disease and presentation was transmissible to tg650 mice and bank voles. Intriguingly, protease-resistant PrP in the brain of tg650 mice resembled that found in a familial human prion disease and was transmissible upon passage. Abnormal PrP aggregates upon infection with Wisc-1 were detectable in thalamus, hypothalamus, and midbrain/pons regions.

Unprecedented in human prion disease, feces of CWD-inoculated tg650 mice harbored prion seeding activity and infectious prions, as shown by inoculation of bank voles and tg650 with fecal homogenates.

Conclusions: This is the first evidence that CWD can infect humans and cause disease with a distinctive clinical presentation, signature, and tropism, which might be transmissible between humans while current diagnostic assays might fail to detect it. These findings have major implications for public health and CWD-management.

Funded by: We are grateful for financial support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the National Institutes of Health, Genome Canada, and the Alberta Prion Research Institute. SG is supported by the Canada Research Chairs program.

Acknowledgement: We thank Dr. Trent Bollinger, WCVM, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada, for providing brain tissue from the WTD-116AG isolate, Dr. Stéphane Haïk, ICM, Paris, France, for providing brain tissue from vCJD and sCJD cases, and Dr. Umberto Agrimi, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Italy, for the bank vole model. We thank animal facility staff for animal care, Dr. Stephanie Anderson for veterinary oversight, and Yo-Ching Cheng for preparing recombinant PrP substrates. Thank you to Dr. Stephanie Booth and Jennifer Myskiw, Public Health Agency of Canada, Canada.

The chronic wasting disease agent from white-tailed deer is infectious to humanized mice after passage through raccoons

Eric Cassmanna, Xu Qib, Qingzhong Kongb, and Justin Greenleea

aNational Animal Disease Center, Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, USA bDepartments of Pathology, Neurology, National Center for Regenerative Medicine, and National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Aims: Evaluate the zoonotic potential of the raccoon passaged chronic wasting disease (CWD) agent in humanized transgenic mice in comparison with the North American CWD agent from the original white-tailed deer host.

Material and Methods: Pooled brain material (GG96) from a CWD positive herd was used to oronasally inoculate two white-tailed deer with wild-type prion protein genotype and intracranially inoculate a raccoon. Brain homogenates (10% w/v) from the raccoon and the two white-tailed deer were used to intracranially inoculate separate groups of transgenic mice that express human prion protein with methionine (M) at codon 129 (Tg40h). Brains and spleens were collected from mice at experimental endpoints of clinical disease or approximately 700 days post-inoculation. Tissues were divided and homogenized or fixed in 10% buffered neutral formalin. Immunohistochemistry, enzyme immunoassay, and western blot were used to detect misfolded prion protein (PrPSc) in tissue.

Results: Humanized transgenic mice inoculated with the raccoon passaged CWD agent from white-tailed deer exhibited a 100% (12/12) attack rate with an average incubation period of 605 days. PrPScwas detected in brain tissue by enzyme immunoassay with an average optical density of 3.6/4.0 for positive brains. PrPScalso was detected in brain tissue by western blot and immunohistochemistry. No PrPScwas detected in the spleens of mice inoculated with the raccoon passaged CWD agent. Humanized mice inoculated with the CWD agent from white-tailed deer did not have detectable PrPScusing conventional immunoassay techniques.

Conclusions: The host range of the CWD agent from white-tailed deer was expanded in our experimental model after one passage through raccoons.

Funded by: This research was funded in its entirety by congressionally appropriated funds to the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. The funders of the work did not influence study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Acknowledgement: We thank Quazetta Brown, Lexi Frese, Rylie Frese, Kevin Hassall, Leisa Mandell, and Trudy Tatum for providing excellent technical support to this project.

Stable and highly zoonotic cervid prion strain is possible

Manuel Camacho, Xu Qi, Liuting Qing, Sydney Smith, Jieji Hu, Wanyun Tao, Ignazio Cali, and Qingzhong Kong Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA

Aims: Whether CWD prions can infect humans remains unclear despite the very substantial scale and long history of human exposure of CWD in some areas. Multiple in vitro conversion experiments and in vivo animal studies suggest that the CWD-to-human transmission barrier is not unbreakable. A major public health concern on CWD zoonosis is the emergence of highly zoonotic CWD strains. We aim to address the question of whether highly zoonotic CWD strains are possible.

Material and Methods: We inoculated a few sCJD brain samples into cervidized transgenic mice, which were intended as negative controls for bioassays of brain tissues from sCJD cases who had hunted or consumed vension from CWD-endemic states. Some of these mice became infected and their brain tissues were further examined by serial passages in humanized or cervidized mice.

Results: Passage of sCJDMM1 in transgenic mice expressing elk PrP (Tg12) resulted in a ‘cervidized’ CJD strain that we termed CJDElkPrP. We observed 100% transmission of CJDElkPrPin transgenic mice expressing human PrP (Tg40h). We passaged CJDElkPrPtwo more times in the Tg12 mice. We found that such second and third passage CJDElkPrPprions also led to 100% infection in the Tg40h mice. In contrast, we and others found zero or poor transmission of natural elk CWD isolates in humanized mice, despite that natural elk CWD isolates and CJDElkPrPshare the same elk PrP sequence.

Conclusions: Our data demonstrate that highly zoonotic cervid prion strains are not only possible but also can be stably maintained in cervids and that CWD zoonosis is prion strain-dependent.

Funded by: NIH

Grant number: R01NS052319, R01NS088604, R01NS109532

Acknowledgement: We want to thank the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center and Drs. Allen Jenny and Katherine O’Rourke for providing the sCJD samples and the CWD samples, respectively.

Adaptation of chronic wasting disease (CWD) prion strains in hosts with different PRNP genotypes

Camilo Duque Velasqueza,c, Elizabeth Triscotta,c, Chiye Kima,c, Diana Morenoa,c, Judd Aikenb,c, and Debbie McKenziea,c

aDepartment of Biological Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2G8, Canada; bDepartment of Agriculture, Food & Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2G8, Canada; cCentre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada

Aims: The contagious nature of CWD epizootics and the PrPCamino acid variation of cervids (and susceptible sympatric species) guarantee the expansion of prion conformational diversity and selective landscapes where new strains can arise. CWD strains can have novel transmission properties including altered host range that may increase zoonotic risk as circulating strains diversify and evolve. We are characterizing the host adaptability of characterized CWD strains as well as CWD isolates from different cervid species in various enzootic regions.

Material and Methods: Characterized CWD strains as well as a number of isolates from hunter-harvested deer were bioassayed in our rodent panel (transgenic mice expressing cervid alleles G96, S96 and H95-PrPC, elk PrPC, bovine PrPC, and both hamsters and non-transgenic laboratory mice). Strain characteristics were compared using computer based scoring of brain pathology (e.g. PrPCWDbrain distribution), western blot and protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA).

Results: Transmission of various isolates resulted in the selection of strain mixtures in hosts expressing similar PrPC, particularly for polymorphic white-tailed deer and for Norwegian reindeer. As of the second passage, transmission of P153 moose prions from Norway has not resulted in emergence of strains with properties similar to any North American CWD strains in our taxonomic collection (Wisc-1, CWD2, H95+and 116AG).

Conclusions: Our data indicates polymorphic white-tailed deer can favor infection with more than one strain. Similar to transmission studies of Colorado CWD isolates from cervids expressing a single PrPCprimary structure, the isolate from Norway reindeer (V214) represents a strain mixture, suggesting intrinsic strain diversity in the Nordfjella epizootic. The diversity of CWD strains with distinct transmission characteristics represents a threat to wildlife, sympatric domestic animals and public health.

Funded by: Genome Canada and Genome Alberta (Alberta Prion Research Institute and Alberta Agriculture & Forestry); NSERC Grant number: #LSARP 10205; NSERC RGPIN-2017-05539

Acknowledgement: We would like to thank Margo Pybus (Alberta Environment and Parks) Trent Bollinger (University of Saskatchewan) for providing us with tissue samples from hunter-harvested deer and Sylvie Benestad for providing moose and reindeer samples.

Application of PMCA to understand CWD prion strains, species barrier and zoonotic potential

Sandra Pritzkowa, Damian Gorskia, Frank Ramireza, Fei Wanga, Glenn C. Tellingb, Justin J. Greenleec, Sylvie L. Benestadd, and Claudio Sotoa aDepartment of Neurology, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA; bDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA; cVirus and Prion Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, Iowa, USA; dNorwegian Veterinary Institute, OIE Reference Laboratory for CWD, Ås, Norway

Aims: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease affecting various species of cervids that continues to spread uncontrollably across North America and has recently been detected in Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden and Finland). The mechanisms responsible for the natural transmission of CWD are largely unknown. Furthermore, the risk of CWD transmission to other species, including humans, is also unknown and remains a dangerous enigma. In this study, we investigated the potential of CWD prions to infect several other animal species (sheep, cattle, pig, hamster, and mouse) including humans, by examining their capacity to convert the normal prion protein of distinct species in a PMCA reaction. Moreover, we also investigated whether the in vivo passage of CWD through intermediate species alters their capacity for zoonotic transmission, which may represent a major hazard to human health.

Material and Methods: For these studies, we used brain material from CWD-infected white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), elk (Cervus canadensis), and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) as species native to North America. We also used CWD-infected Moose (Alces alces), reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) and red deer (Cervus elaphus) as Norwegian cervids. We also used brains from cattle, sheep and pigs experimentally infected by CWD. To study interspecies-transmission and zoonotic potential, samples were tested via PMCA for the conversion of PrPCinto PrPScusing different combinations of inoculum and host species. Based on these analyses we estimated the spillover and zoonotic potential for different CWD isolates. We define and quantify spillover and zoonotic potential indices as the efficiency by which CWD prions sustain prion generation in vitro at the expense of normal prion proteins from various mammals and human, respectively.

Results: Our results show that prions from some cervid species, especially those found in Northern Europe, have a higher potential to transmit disease characteristics to other animals. Conversely, CWD-infected cervids originated in North America appear to have a greater potential to generate human PrPSc. We also found that in vivo transmission of CWD to cattle, but not to sheep or pigs substantially increases the ability of these prions to convert human PrPCby PMCA.

Conclusions: Our findings support the existence of different CWD prion strains with distinct spillover and zoonotic potentials. We also conclude that transmission of CWD to other animal species may increase the risk for CWD transmission to humans. Our studies may provide a tool to predict the array of animal species that a given CWD prion could affect and may contribute to understanding the risk of CWD for human health.

Funded by: National Institute of Health Grant number: P01 AI077774

Generation of human chronic wasting disease in transgenic mice

Zerui Wanga, Kefeng Qinb, Manuel V. Camachoa, Ignazio Cali a,c, Jue Yuana, Pingping Shena, Tricia Gillilanda, Syed Zahid Ali Shaha, Maria Gerasimenkoa, Michelle Tanga, Sarada Rajamanickama, Anika Yadatia, Lawrence B. Schonbergerd, Justin Greenleee, Qingzhong Konga,c, James A. Mastriannib, and Wen-Quan Zoua,c

aDepartment of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA; bDepartment of Neurology and Center for Comprehensive Care and Research on Memory Disorders, the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, USA; cNational Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA; dDivision of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd, Atlanta, GA, USA; eVirus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, USDA, Agricultural Research Service, 1920 Dayton Avenue, Ames, IA, USA

Aims: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) results from the accumulation of an infectious misfolded conformer (PrPSc) of cellular prion protein (PrPC) in the brains of deer and elk. It has been spreading rapidly throughout many regions of North America, exported inadvertently to South Korea, and more recently identified in Europe. Mad cow disease has caused variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) in humans and is currently the only known zoonotic prion disease. Whether CWD is transmissible to humans remains uncertain. The aims of our study were not only to confirm whether CWD prion isolates can convert human brain PrPCinto PrPScin vitro by serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (sPMCA) but also to determine whether the sPMCA-induced CWD-derived human PrPScis infectious.

Material and Methods: Eight CWD prion isolates from 7 elks and 1 deer were used as the seeds while normal human brain homogenates containing either PrP-129 MM (n = 2) or PrP-129 VV (n = 1) were used as the substrates for sPMCA assay. A normal elk brain tissue sample was used as a negative control seed. Two lines of humanized transgenic (Tg) mice expressing either human PrP-129VV or −129 MM polymorphism were included for transmission studies to determine the infectivity of PMCA-amplified PrPSc. Wester blotting and immunohistochemistry and hematoxylin & eosin staining were used for determining PrPScand neuropathological changes of inoculated animals.

Results: We report here the generation of the first CWD-derived infectious human PrPScusing elk CWD PrPScto initiate conversion of human PrPCfrom normal human brain homogenates with PMCA in vitro. Western blotting with a human PrP selective antibody confirmed that the PMCA-generated protease-resistant PrPScwas derived from the human brain PrPCsubstrate. Two lines of humanized transgenic mice expressing human PrPCwith either Val or Met at the polymorphic codon 129 developed clinical prion disease following intracerebral inoculation with the PMCA-generated CWD-derived human PrPSc. Diseased mice exhibited distinct PrPScpatterns and neuropathological changes in the brain.

Conclusions: Our study, using PMCA and animal bioassays, provides the first evidence that CWD PrPSchas the potential to overcome the species barrier and directly convert human PrPCinto infectious PrPScthat can produce bona fide prion disease when inoculated into humanized transgenic mice.

Funded by: CJD Foundation and NIH

Mortality surveillance of persons potentially exposed to chronic wasting disease

R.A. Maddoxa, R.F. Klosb, L.R. Willb, S.N. Gibbons-Burgenerb, A. Mvilongoa, J.Y. Abramsa, B.S. Applebyc, L.B. Schonbergera, and E.D. Belaya aNational Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, USA; bWisconsin Department of Health Services (WDHS), Division of Public Health, Madison, USA; cNational Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (NPDPSC), Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA

Aims: It is unknown whether chronic wasting disease (CWD), a prion disease of cervids, can infect people, but consumption of meat from infected animals would be the most likely route of transmission. Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Division of Public Health (WDHS) personnel maintain a database consisting of information collected from hunters who reported eating, or an intention to eat, venison from CWD-positive cervids. These data, collected since 2003, allow for the evaluation of causes of mortality in individuals potentially exposed to CWD.

Material and Methods: The WDHS database contains the name, date of birth, when available, year of CWD-positive deer harvest, and city and state of residence for each potentially exposed individual. The database also includes information on how the deer was processed (self-processed or by a commercial operator) and when applicable, names of others with whom the venison was shared. Duplicate entries (i.e., those who consumed venison from CWD-positive deer in multiple hunt years) are determined by first name, last name, and date of birth. All names in the database are cross-checked with reported cases of human prion disease in Wisconsin and cases in the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (NPDPSC) diagnostic testing database. Persons with date of birth available are also cross-checked with prion disease decedents identified through restricted-use national multiple cause-of-death data via a data use agreement with the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).

Results: The database currently consists of 1561 records for hunt years 2003–2017 and 87 additional records for 2018–2019. Of these, 657 records have accompanying date of birth; 15 entries were removed as duplicates leaving 642 unique individuals. Of these individuals, 278 of 426 (66%) who ate venison from a CWD-positive deer and provided processing information reported self-processing. No matches were found among any persons in the database cross-checked with WDHS human prion disease surveillance data, NPDPSC data (February 2022 update), and NCHS data through 2020.

Conclusions: Because of the linkage of person and CWD-positive animal in the WDHS database, reviewing the cause of mortality in potentially exposed persons is possible. The number of individuals cross-checked so far is likely only a small percentage of those potentially exposed to CWD in Wisconsin, and many more years of vital status tracking are needed given an expected long incubation period should transmission to humans occur. Nevertheless, the findings of this ongoing review are thus far reassuring.

Prion disease incidence, United States, 2003–2020

R.A. Maddoxa, M.K. Persona, K. Kotobellib, A. Mvilongoa, B.S. Applebyb, L.B. Schonbergera, T.A. Hammetta, J.Y. Abramsa, and E.D. Belaya aNational Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, USA; bNational Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (NPDPSC), Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA

Aims: Mortality data, in conjunction with neuropathological and genetic testing results, are used to estimate prion disease incidence in the United States.

Material and Methods: Prion disease decedents for 2003–2020 were identified from restricted-use U.S. national multiple cause-of-death data, via a data use agreement with the National Center for Health Statistics, and from the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (NPDPSC) database. NPDPSC decedents with neuropathological or genetic test results positive for prion disease for whom no likely match was found in the NCHS multiple cause-of-death data were added as cases for incidence calculations, while those with negative neuropathology results but with cause-of-death data indicating prion disease were removed. Unmatched cases in the NPDPSC database lacking neuropathological testing but with a positive real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) test result were additionally assessed. Age-specific and age-adjusted average annual incidence rates were calculated from the combined data; the year 2000 as the standard population and the direct method were used for age-adjustment.

Results: A total of 7,921 decedents were identified as having prion disease during 2003–2020 for an age-adjusted average annual incidence of 1.2 per million population. The age-adjusted incidence between males and females (1.3 and 1.1 per million, respectively) differed significantly (p < 0.0001). The age-specific average annual incidence among those <55 and ≥55 years of age was 0.2 and 4.8 per million, respectively; incidence among those ≥65 was 6.1 per million. Eighteen cases were <30 years of age for an age-specific incidence of 8.0 per billion; only 6 of these very young cases were sporadic (3 sporadic CJD, 3 sporadic fatal insomnia), with the rest being familial (9), variant (2), or iatrogenic (1). The age-adjusted annual incidence for the most recent year of data, 2020, was 1.3 per million. However, assessment of RT-QuIC positive cases lacking neuropathology in the NPDPSC database suggested that approximately 20% more cases may have occurred in that year; the addition of a subset of these cases that had date of death information available (n = 44) increased the 2020 rate to 1.4 per million.

Conclusions: Mortality data supplemented with the results of neuropathological, CSF RT-QuIC, and genetic testing can be used to estimate prion disease incidence. However, the identification in the NPDPSC database of RT-QuIC-positive cases lacking date of death information suggests that this strategy may exclude a number of probable prion disease cases. Prion disease cases <30 years of age, especially those lacking a pathogenic mutation, continue to be very rare.

Shedding of Chronic Wasting Disease Prions in Multiple Excreta Throughout Disease Course in White-tailed Deer

Nathaniel D. Denkersa, Erin E. McNultya, Caitlyn N. Krafta, Amy V. Nallsa, Joseph A. Westricha, Wilfred Goldmannb, Candace K. Mathiasona, and Edward A. Hoovera

aPrion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biological Sciences, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology; Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA; bDivision of Infection and Immunity, The Roslin Institute and the Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, UK

Aims: Chronic wasting disease (CWD) now infects cervids in South Korea, North America, and Scandinavia. CWD is unique in its efficient transmission and shedding of prions in body fluids throughout long course infections. Questions remain as to the magnitude of shedding and the route of prion acquisition. As CWD continues to expand, the need to better understand these facets of disease becomes more pertinent. The purpose of the studies described was to define the longitudinal shedding profile of CWD prions in urine, saliva, and feces throughout the course of infection in white-tailed deer.

Material and Methods: Twelve (12) white-tailed deer were inoculated with either 1 mg or 300ng of CWD. Urine, saliva, and feces were collected every 3-month post-inoculation (MPI) throughout the study duration. Cohorts were established based on PNRP genotype: codon 96 GG (n = 6) and alternate codons 96 GS (n = 5) & 103NT (n = 1). Urine and saliva were analyzed using iron-oxide magnetic extraction (IOME) and real-time quaking induced conversion (RT-QuIC)(IQ). Feces were subjected to IOME, followed by 4 rounds protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) with products analyzed by RT-QuIC (IPQ). To determine whether IPQ may be superior to IQ, a subset of urine and saliva were also tested by IPQ. Results were compared with clinical disease status.

Results: Within the 96 GG cohort, positive seeding activity was detected in feces from all deer (100%), in saliva from 5 of 6 (83%), and in urine from 4 of 6 (66%). Shedding in all excreta occurred at, or just after, the first positive tonsil biopsy result. In the 96 GS/103NT cohort, positive seeding activity could be detected in feces from 3 of 6 (50%) deer, saliva in 2 of 6 (33%), and urine in 1 of 6 (16%). Shedding in excreta was detected >5 months after the first tonsil positive result. Four of six 96 GG deer developed clinical signs of CWD, whereas only 2 of the 96 GS/103NT did. Shedding was more frequently detected in deer with clinical disease. The IPQ protocol did not significantly improve detection in saliva or urine samples, however, it significantly augmented detection in feces by eliminating non-specific background commonly experienced with IQ. Negative control samples remained negative in samples tested.

Conclusions: These studies demonstrate: (a) CWD prion excretion occurs throughout infection; (2) PRNP genotype (GG≫GS/NT) influences the excreta shedding; and (3) detection sensitivity in excreta can vary with different RT-QuIC protocols. These results provide a more complete perspective of prion shedding in deer during the course of CWD infection.

Funded by: National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Grant number: RO1-NS061902-09 R to EAH, PO1-AI077774 to EAH, and R01-AI112956-06 to CKM

Acknowledgement: We abundantly thank Sallie Dahmes at WASCO and David Osborn and Gino D’Angelo at the University of Georgia Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources for their long-standing support of this work through provision of the hand-raised, CWD-free, white-tailed deer used in these studies

Large-scale PMCA screening of retropharyngeal lymph nodes and in white-tailed deer and comparisons with ELISA and IHC: the Texas CWD study

Rebeca Benaventea, Paulina Sotoa, Mitch Lockwoodb, and Rodrigo Moralesa

aDepartment of Neurology, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas, USA; bTexas Park and Wildlife Department, Texas, USA

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that affects various species of cervids, and both free-ranging and captive animals. Until now, CWD has been detected in 3 continents: North America, Europe, and Asia. CWD prevalence in some states may reach 30% of total animals. In Texas, the first case of CWD was reported in a free-range mule deer in Hudspeth and now it has been detected in additional 14 counties. Currently, the gold standard techniques used for CWD screening and detection are ELISA and immunohistochemistry (IHC) of obex and retropharyngeal lymph nodes (RPLN). Unfortunately, these methods are known for having a low diagnostic sensitivity. Hence, many CWD-infected animals at pre-symptomatic stages may be misdiagnosed. Two promising in vitro prion amplification techniques, including the real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) and the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) have been used to diagnose CWD and other prion diseases in several tissues and bodily fluids. Considering the low cost and speed of RT-QuIC, two recent studies have communicated the potential of this technique to diagnose CWD prions in RPLN samples. Unfortunately, the data presented in these articles suggest that identification of CWD positive samples is comparable to the currently used ELISA and IHC protocols. Similar studies using the PMCA technique have not been reported.

Aims: Compare the CWD diagnostic potential of PMCA with ELISA and IHC in RPLN samples from captive and free-range white-tailed deer. Material and Methods: In this study we analyzed 1,003 RPLN from both free-ranging and captive white-tailed deer collected in Texas. Samples were interrogated with the PMCA technique for their content of CWD prions. PMCA data was compared with the results obtained through currently approved techniques.

Results: Our results show a 15-fold increase in CWD detection in free-range deer compared with ELISA. Our results unveil the presence of prion infected animals in Texas counties with no previous history of CWD. In the case of captive deer, we detected a 16% more CWD positive animals when compared with IHC. Interestingly, some of these positive samples displayed differences in their electroforetic mobilities, suggesting the presence of different prion strains within the State of Texas.

Conclusions: PMCA sensitivity is significantly higher than the current gold standards techniques IHC and ELISA and would be a good tool for rapid CWD screening.

Funded by: USDA

Grant number: AP20VSSPRS00C143

ATYPRION project: assessing the zoonotic potential of interspecies transmission of CWD isolates to livestock (preliminary results).

Enric Vidala,b, Juan Carlos Espinosac, Samanta Gilera,b, Montserrat Ordóñeza,b, Guillermo Canteroa,b, Vincent Béringued, Justin J. Greenleee, and Juan Maria Torresc

aUnitat mixta d’Investigació IRTA-UAB en Sanitat Animal. Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA). Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Bellaterra, Catalonia; bIRTA. Programa de Sanitat Animal. Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA). Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Bellaterra, Catalonia; cCentro de Investigación en Sanidad Animal, CISA-INIA-CSIC, Valdeolmos, Madrid, Spain; dMolecular Virology and Immunology, French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment (INRAE), Université Paris-Saclay, Jouy-en-Josas, France; eVirus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, ARS, United States Department of Agriculture, Ames, IA, USA

Aims: Since variant Creutzfeldt-Jackob disease was linked to the consumption of bovine spongiform encephalopathy prions, the study of the pathobiological features of animal prions, particularly their zoonotic potential, is of great concern to the scientific community and public health authorities. Furthermore, interspecies transmission of prions has been demonstrated as a putative evolutionary mechanism for prions, that can lead to the emergence of new features including the ability to infect humans. For instance, small ruminants’ atypical scrapie prions, when propagated in a bovine or porcine host, can shift to a classical BSE phenotype thus posing a potential risk in case of human exposure. So far, no hard evidence of zoonotic transmission of cervids’ chronic wasting disease (CWD) to humans has been published, however experimental transmission to bovine, ovine and caprine hosts has been achieved. Our goal is to investigate if, once passaged through these domestic species, CWD prions might become infectious to humans.

Material and Methods: Different CWD isolates experimentally adapted to cattle, sheep and goat (Hamir et al, 2005, 2006, 2007, Greenlee et al 2012) have been intracerebrally inoculated to transgenic mouse models expressing the human cellular prion protein either homozygous for methionine or valine at codon 129 (Tg340-Met129 and Tg362-Val129). Additionally, inocula obtained from experimental transmission of elk CWD to ovinized (Tg501) and bovinized (BoTg110) transgenic mice, as well as white-tailed deer CWD to BoTg110 mice, are currently being bioassayed in both human PrPCtransgenic models.

Results and conclusions: No evidence of transmission has been found on first passage for bovine adapted elk and mule deer CWD to none of the humanized models. The remaining bioassays are ongoing without showing clinical signs yet, as well as second passages for the negative 1stpassages.

Funded by: La Marató de TV3 foundation. Grant number: ATYPRION (201,821–30-31-32)


Prion Conference 2018 Abstracts

P190 Human prion disease mortality rates by occurrence of chronic wasting disease in freeranging cervids, United States

Abrams JY (1), Maddox RA (1), Schonberger LB (1), Person MK (1), Appleby BS (2), Belay ED (1)

(1) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Atlanta, GA, USA (2) Case Western Reserve University, National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (NPDPSC), Cleveland, OH, USA.

Background

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease of deer and elk that has been identified in freeranging cervids in 23 US states. While there is currently no epidemiological evidence for zoonotic transmission through the consumption of contaminated venison, studies suggest the CWD agent can cross the species barrier in experimental models designed to closely mimic humans. We compared rates of human prion disease in states with and without CWD to examine the possibility of undetermined zoonotic transmission.

Methods

Death records from the National Center for Health Statistics, case records from the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, and additional state case reports were combined to create a database of human prion disease cases from 2003-2015. Identification of CWD in each state was determined through reports of positive CWD tests by state wildlife agencies. Age- and race-adjusted mortality rates for human prion disease, excluding cases with known etiology, were determined for four categories of states based on CWD occurrence: highly endemic (>16 counties with CWD identified in free-ranging cervids); moderately endemic (3-10 counties with CWD); low endemic (1-2 counties with CWD); and no CWD states. States were counted as having no CWD until the year CWD was first identified. Analyses stratified by age, sex, and time period were also conducted to focus on subgroups for which zoonotic transmission would be more likely to be detected: cases <55 years old, male sex, and the latter half of the study (2010-2015).

Results

Highly endemic states had a higher rate of prion disease mortality compared to non-CWD states (rate ratio [RR]: 1.12, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01 - 1.23), as did low endemic states (RR: 1.15, 95% CI = 1.04 - 1.27). Moderately endemic states did not have an elevated mortality rate (RR: 1.05, 95% CI = 0.93 - 1.17). In age-stratified analyses, prion disease mortality rates among the <55 year old population were elevated for moderately endemic states (RR: 1.57, 95% CI = 1.10 – 2.24) while mortality rates were elevated among those ≥55 for highly endemic states (RR: 1.13, 95% CI = 1.02 - 1.26) and low endemic states (RR: 1.16, 95% CI = 1.04 - 1.29). In other stratified analyses, prion disease mortality rates for males were only elevated for low endemic states (RR: 1.27, 95% CI = 1.10 - 1.48), and none of the categories of CWD-endemic states had elevated mortality rates for the latter time period (2010-2015).

Conclusions

While higher prion disease mortality rates in certain categories of states with CWD in free-ranging cervids were noted, additional stratified analyses did not reveal markedly elevated rates for potentially sensitive subgroups that would be suggestive of zoonotic transmission. Unknown confounding factors or other biases may explain state-by-state differences in prion disease mortality.

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P172 Peripheral Neuropathy in Patients with Prion Disease

Wang H(1), Cohen M(1), Appleby BS(1,2)

(1) University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio (2) National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, Cleveland, Ohio.

Prion disease is a fatal progressive neurodegenerative disease due to deposition of an abnormal protease-resistant isoform of prion protein. Typical symptoms include rapidly progressive dementia, myoclonus, visual disturbance and hallucinations. Interestingly, in patients with prion disease, the abnormal protein canould also be found in the peripheral nervous system. Case reports of prion deposition in peripheral nerves have been reported. Peripheral nerve involvement is thought to be uncommon; however, little is known about the exact prevalence and features of peripheral neuropathy in patients with prion disease.

We reviewed autopsy-proven prion cases from the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center that were diagnosed between September 2016 to March 2017. We collected information regarding prion protein diagnosis, demographics, comorbidities, clinical symptoms, physical exam, neuropathology, molecular subtype, genetics lab, brain MRI, image and EMG reports. Our study included 104 patients. Thirteen (12.5%) patients had either subjective symptoms or objective signs of peripheral neuropathy. Among these 13 patients, 3 had other known potential etiologies of peripheral neuropathy such as vitamin B12 deficiency or prior chemotherapy. Among 10 patients that had no other clear etiology, 3 (30%) had familial CJD. The most common sCJD subtype was MV1-2 (30%), followed by MM1-2 (20%). The Majority of cases wasere male (60%). Half of them had exposure to wild game. The most common subjective symptoms were tingling and/or numbness of distal extremities. The most common objective finding was diminished vibratory sensation in the feet. Half of them had an EMG with the findings ranging from fasciculations to axonal polyneuropathy or demyelinating polyneuropathy.

Our study provides an overview of the pattern of peripheral neuropathy in patients with prion disease. Among patients with peripheral neuropathy symptoms or signs, majority has polyneuropathy. It is important to document the baseline frequency of peripheral neuropathy in prion diseases as these symptoms may become important when conducting surveillance for potential novel zoonotic prion diseases.

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P177 PrP plaques in methionine homozygous Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease patients as a potential marker of iatrogenic transmission

Abrams JY (1), Schonberger LB (1), Cali I (2), Cohen Y (2), Blevins JE (2), Maddox RA (1), Belay ED (1), Appleby BS (2), Cohen ML (2)

(1) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Atlanta, GA, USA (2) Case Western Reserve University, National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (NPDPSC), Cleveland, OH, USA.

Background

Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is widely believed to originate from de novo spontaneous conversion of normal prion protein (PrP) to its pathogenic form, but concern remains that some reported sporadic CJD cases may actually be caused by disease transmission via iatrogenic processes. For cases with methionine homozygosity (CJD-MM) at codon 129 of the PRNP gene, recent research has pointed to plaque-like PrP deposition as a potential marker of iatrogenic transmission for a subset of cases. This phenotype is theorized to originate from specific iatrogenic source CJD types that comprise roughly a quarter of known CJD cases.

Methods

We reviewed scientific literature for studies which described PrP plaques among CJD patients with known epidemiological links to iatrogenic transmission (receipt of cadaveric human grown hormone or dura mater), as well as in cases of reported sporadic CJD. The presence and description of plaques, along with CJD classification type and other contextual factors, were used to summarize the current evidence regarding plaques as a potential marker of iatrogenic transmission. In addition, 523 cases of reported sporadic CJD cases in the US from January 2013 through September 2017 were assessed for presence of PrP plaques.

Results

We identified four studies describing 52 total cases of CJD-MM among either dura mater recipients or growth hormone recipients, of which 30 were identified as having PrP plaques. While sporadic cases were not generally described as having plaques, we did identify case reports which described plaques among sporadic MM2 cases as well as case reports of plaques exclusively in white matter among sporadic MM1 cases. Among the 523 reported sporadic CJD cases, 0 of 366 MM1 cases had plaques, 2 of 48 MM2 cases had kuru plaques, and 4 of 109 MM1+2 cases had either kuru plaques or both kuru and florid plaques. Medical chart review of the six reported sporadic CJD cases with plaques did not reveal clinical histories suggestive of potential iatrogenic transmission.

Conclusions

PrP plaques occur much more frequently for iatrogenic CJD-MM cases compared to sporadic CJDMM cases. Plaques may indicate iatrogenic transmission for CJD-MM cases without a type 2 Western blot fragment. The study results suggest the absence of significant misclassifications of iatrogenic CJD as sporadic. To our knowledge, this study is the first to describe grey matter kuru plaques in apparently sporadic CJD-MM patients with a type 2 Western blot fragment.

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P180 Clinico-pathological analysis of human prion diseases in a brain bank series

Ximelis T (1), Aldecoa I (1,2), Molina-Porcel L (1,3), Grau-Rivera O (4), Ferrer I (5), Nos C (6), Gelpi E (1,7), Sánchez-Valle R (1,4)

(1) Neurological Tissue Bank of the Biobanc-Hospital ClÃnic-IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain (2) Pathological Service of Hospital ClÃnic de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain (3) EAIA Trastorns Cognitius, Centre Emili Mira, Parc de Salut Mar, Barcelona, Spain (4) Department of Neurology of Hospital ClÃnic de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain (5) Institute of Neuropathology, Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona (6) General subdirectorate of Surveillance and Response to Emergencies in Public Health, Department of Public Health in Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain (7) Institute of Neurology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.

Background and objective:

The Neurological Tissue Bank (NTB) of the Hospital Clínic-Institut d‘Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer, Barcelona, Spain is the reference center in Catalonia for the neuropathological study of prion diseases in the region since 2001. The aim of this study is to analyse the characteristics of the confirmed prion diseases registered at the NTB during the last 15 years.

Methods:

We reviewed retrospectively all neuropathologically confirmed cases registered during the period January 2001 to December 2016.

Results:

176 cases (54,3% female, mean age: 67,5 years and age range: 25-86 years) of neuropathological confirmed prion diseases have been studied at the NTB. 152 cases corresponded to sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD), 10 to genetic CJD, 10 to Fatal Familial Insomnia, 2 to GerstmannSträussler-Scheinker disease, and 2 cases to variably protease-sensitive prionopathy (VPSPr). Within sCJD subtypes the MM1 subtype was the most frequent, followed by the VV2 histotype.

Clinical and neuropathological diagnoses agreed in 166 cases (94%). The clinical diagnosis was not accurate in 10 patients with definite prion disease: 1 had a clinical diagnosis of Fronto-temporal dementia (FTD), 1 Niemann-Pick‘s disease, 1 Lewy Body‘s Disease, 2 Alzheimer‘s disease, 1 Cortico-basal syndrome and 2 undetermined dementia. Among patients with VPSPr, 1 had a clinical diagnosis of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and the other one with FTD.

Concomitant pathologies are frequent in older age groups, mainly AD neuropathological changes were observed in these subjects.

Discussion:

A wide spectrum of human prion diseases have been identified in the NTB being the relative frequencies and main characteristics like other published series. There is a high rate of agreement between clinical and neuropathological diagnoses with prion diseases. These findings show the importance that public health has given to prion diseases during the past 15 years. Continuous surveillance of human prion disease allows identification of new emerging phenotypes. Brain tissue samples from these donors are available to the scientific community. For more information please visit:


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P192 Prion amplification techniques for the rapid evaluation of surface decontamination procedures

Bruyere-Ostells L (1), Mayran C (1), Belondrade M (1), Boublik Y (2), Haïk S (3), Fournier-Wirth C (1), Nicot S (1), Bougard D (1)

(1) Pathogenesis and control of chronic infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France. (2) Centre de Recherche en Biologie cellulaire de Montpellier, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France. (3) Inserm U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Université Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière, ICM, Paris, France.

Aims:

Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSE) or prion diseases are a group of incurable and always fatal neurodegenerative disorders including Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseases (CJD) in humans. These pathologies include sporadic (sCJD), genetic and acquired (variant CJD) forms. By the past, sCJD and vCJD were transmitted by different prion contaminated biological materials to patients resulting in more than 400 iatrogenic cases (iCJD). The atypical nature and the biochemical properties of the infectious agent, formed by abnormal prion protein or PrPTSE, make it particularly resistant to conventional decontamination procedures. In addition, PrPTSE is widely distributed throughout the organism before clinical onset in vCJD and can also be detected in some peripheral tissues in sporadic CJD. Risk of iatrogenic transmission of CJD by contaminated medical device remains thus a concern for healthcare facilities. Bioassay is the gold standard method to evaluate the efficacy of prion decontamination procedures but is time-consuming and expensive. Here, we propose to compare in vitro prion amplification techniques: Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) and Real-Time Quaking Induced Conversion (RT-QuIC) for the detection of residual prions on surface after decontamination.

Methods:

Stainless steel wires, by mimicking the surface of surgical instruments, were proposed as a carrier model of prions for inactivation studies. To determine the sensitivity of the two amplification techniques on wires (Surf-PMCA and Surf-QuIC), steel wires were therefore contaminated with serial dilutions of brain homogenates (BH) from a 263k infected hamster and from a patient with sCJD (MM1 subtype). We then compared the different standard decontamination procedures including partially and fully efficient treatments by detecting the residual seeding activity on 263K and sCJD contaminated wires. We completed our study by the evaluation of marketed reagents endorsed for prion decontamination.

Results:

The two amplification techniques can detect minute quantities of PrPTSE adsorbed onto a single wire. 8/8 wires contaminated with a 10-6 dilution of 263k BH and 1/6 with the 10-8 dilution are positive with Surf-PMCA. Similar performances were obtained with Surf-QuIC on 263K: 10/16 wires contaminated with 10-6 dilution and 1/8 wires contaminated with 10-8 dilution are positive. Regarding the human sCJD-MM1 prion, Surf-QuIC allows us to detect 16/16 wires contaminated with 10-6 dilutions and 14/16 with 10-7 . Results obtained after decontamination treatments are very similar between 263K and sCJD prions. Efficiency of marketed treatments to remove prions is lower than expected.

Conclusions:

Surf-PMCA and Surf-QuIC are very sensitive methods for the detection of prions on wires and could be applied to prion decontamination studies for rapid evaluation of new treatments. Sodium hypochlorite is the only product to efficiently remove seeding activity of both 263K and sCJD prions.

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WA2 Oral transmission of CWD into Cynomolgus macaques: signs of atypical disease, prion conversion and infectivity in macaques and bio-assayed transgenic mice

Schatzl HM (1, 2), Hannaoui S (1, 2), Cheng Y-C (1, 2), Gilch S (1, 2), Beekes M (3), SchulzSchaeffer W (4), Stahl-Hennig C (5) and Czub S (2, 6)

(1) University of Calgary, Calgary Prion Research Unit, Calgary, Canada (2) University of Calgary, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Calgary, Canada, (3) Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany, (4) University of Homburg/Saar, Homburg, Germany, (5) German Primate Center, Goettingen, Germany, (6) Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), Lethbridge, Canada.

To date, BSE is the only example of interspecies transmission of an animal prion disease into humans. The potential zoonotic transmission of CWD is an alarming issue and was addressed by many groups using a variety of in vitro and in vivo experimental systems. Evidence from these studies indicated a substantial, if not absolute, species barrier, aligning with the absence of epidemiological evidence suggesting transmission into humans. Studies in non-human primates were not conclusive so far, with oral transmission into new-world monkeys and no transmission into old-world monkeys. Our consortium has challenged 18 Cynomolgus macaques with characterized CWD material, focusing on oral transmission with muscle tissue. Some macaques have orally received a total of 5 kg of muscle material over a period of 2 years. After 5-7 years of incubation time some animals showed clinical symptoms indicative of prion disease, and prion neuropathology and PrPSc deposition were found in spinal cord and brain of euthanized animals. PrPSc in immunoblot was weakly detected in some spinal cord materials and various tissues tested positive in RT-QuIC, including lymph node and spleen homogenates. To prove prion infectivity in the macaque tissues, we have intracerebrally inoculated 2 lines of transgenic mice, expressing either elk or human PrP. At least 3 TgElk mice, receiving tissues from 2 different macaques, showed clinical signs of a progressive prion disease and brains were positive in immunoblot and RT-QuIC. Tissues (brain, spinal cord and spleen) from these and preclinical mice are currently tested using various read-outs and by second passage in mice. Transgenic mice expressing human PrP were so far negative for clear clinical prion disease (some mice >300 days p.i.). In parallel, the same macaque materials are inoculated into bank voles. Taken together, there is strong evidence of transmissibility of CWD orally into macaques and from macaque tissues into transgenic mouse models, although with an incomplete attack rate. The clinical and pathological presentation in macaques was mostly atypical, with a strong emphasis on spinal cord pathology. Our ongoing studies will show whether the transmission of CWD into macaques and passage in transgenic mice represents a form of non-adaptive prion amplification, and whether macaque-adapted prions have the potential to infect mice expressing human PrP. The notion that CWD can be transmitted orally into both new-world and old-world non-human primates asks for a careful reevaluation of the zoonotic risk of CWD.

See also poster P103

***> The notion that CWD can be transmitted orally into both new-world and old-world non-human primates asks for a careful reevaluation of the zoonotic risk of CWD.

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WA16 Monitoring Potential CWD Transmission to Humans

Belay ED

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Atlanta, GA, USA.

The spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in animals has raised concerns about increasing human exposure to the CWD agent via hunting and venison consumption, potentially facilitating CWD transmission to humans. Several studies have explored this possibility, including limited epidemiologic studies, in vitro experiments, and laboratory studies using various types of animal models. Most human exposures to the CWD agent in the United States would be expected to occur in association with deer and elk hunting in CWD-endemic areas. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) collaborated with state health departments in Colorado, Wisconsin, and Wyoming to identify persons at risk of CWD exposure and to monitor their vital status over time. Databases were established of persons who hunted in Colorado and Wyoming and those who reported consumption of venison from deer that later tested positive in Wisconsin. Information from the databases is periodically cross-checked with mortality data to determine the vital status and causes of death for deceased persons. Long-term follow-up of these hunters is needed to assess their risk of development of a prion disease linked to CWD exposure.

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P166 Characterization of CJD strain profiles in venison consumers and non-consumers from Alberta and Saskatchewan

Stephanie Booth (1,2), Lise Lamoureux (1), Debra Sorensen (1), Jennifer L. Myskiw (1,2), Megan Klassen (1,2), Michael Coulthart (3), Valerie Sim (4)

(1) Zoonotic Diseases and Special Pathogens, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg (2) Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg (3) Canadian CJD Surveillance System, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa (4) Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton.

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is spreading rapidly through wild cervid populations in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. While this has implications for tourism and hunting, there is also concern over possible zoonotic transmission to humans who eat venison from infected deer. Whilst there is no evidence of any human cases of CWD to date, the Canadian CJD Surveillance System (CJDSS) in Canada is staying vigilant. When variant CJD occurred following exposure to BSE, the unique biochemical fingerprint of the pathologic PrP enabled a causal link to be confirmed. However, we cannot be sure what phenotype human CWD prions would present with, or indeed, whether this would be distinct from that see in sporadic CJD. Therefore we are undertaking a systematic analysis of the molecular diversity of CJD cases of individuals who resided in Alberta and Saskatchewan at their time of death comparing venison consumers and non-consumers, using a variety of clinical, imaging, pathological and biochemical markers. Our initial objective is to develop novel biochemical methodologies that will extend the baseline glycoform and genetic polymorphism typing that is already completed by the CJDSS. Firstly, we are reviewing MRI, EEG and pathology information from over 40 cases of CJD to select clinically affected areas for further investigation. Biochemical analysis will include assessment of the levels of protease sensitive and resistant prion protein, glycoform typing using 2D gel electrophoresis, testing seeding capabilities and kinetics of aggregation by quaking-induced conversion, and determining prion oligomer size distributions with asymmetric flow field fractionation with in-line light scattering. Progress and preliminary data will be presented. Ultimately, we intend to further define the relationship between PrP structure and disease phenotype and establish a baseline for the identification of future atypical CJD cases that may arise as a result of exposure to CWD.

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Source Prion Conference 2018 Abstracts




Volume 24, Number 8—August 2018 Research Susceptibility of Human Prion Protein to Conversion by Chronic Wasting Disease Prions

Marcelo A. BarriaComments to Author , Adriana Libori, Gordon Mitchell, and Mark W. Head Author affiliations: National CJD Research and Surveillance Unit, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK (M.A. Barria, A. Libori, M.W. Head); National and OIE Reference Laboratory for Scrapie and CWD, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (G. Mitchell)

Abstract Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a contagious and fatal neurodegenerative disease and a serious animal health issue for deer and elk in North America. The identification of the first cases of CWD among free-ranging reindeer and moose in Europe brings back into focus the unresolved issue of whether CWD can be zoonotic like bovine spongiform encephalopathy. We used a cell-free seeded protein misfolding assay to determine whether CWD prions from elk, white-tailed deer, and reindeer in North America can convert the human prion protein to the disease-associated form. We found that prions can convert, but the efficiency of conversion is affected by polymorphic variation in the cervid and human prion protein genes. In view of the similarity of reindeer, elk, and white-tailed deer in North America to reindeer, red deer, and roe deer, respectively, in Europe, a more comprehensive and thorough assessment of the zoonotic potential of CWD might be warranted.

snip...

Discussion Characterization of the transmission properties of CWD and evaluation of their zoonotic potential are important for public health purposes. Given that CWD affects several members of the family Cervidae, it seems reasonable to consider whether the zoonotic potential of CWD prions could be affected by factors such as CWD strain, cervid species, geographic location, and Prnp–PRNP polymorphic variation. We have previously used an in vitro conversion assay (PMCA) to investigate the susceptibility of the human PrP to conversion to its disease-associated form by several animal prion diseases, including CWD (15,16,22). The sensitivity of our molecular model for the detection of zoonotic conversion depends on the combination of 1) the action of proteinase K to degrade the abundant human PrPC that constitutes the substrate while only N terminally truncating any human PrPres produced and 2) the presence of the 3F4 epitope on human but not cervid PrP. In effect, this degree of sensitivity means that any human PrPres formed during the PMCA reaction can be detected down to the limit of Western blot sensitivity. In contrast, if other antibodies that detect both cervid and human PrP are used, such as 6H4, then newly formed human PrPres must be detected as a measurable increase in PrPres over the amount remaining in the reaction product from the cervid seed. Although best known for the efficient amplification of prions in research and diagnostic contexts, the variation of the PMCA method employed in our study is optimized for the definitive detection of zoonotic reaction products of inherently inefficient conversion reactions conducted across species barriers. By using this system, we previously made and reported the novel observation that elk CWD prions could convert human PrPC from human brain and could also convert recombinant human PrPC expressed in transgenic mice and eukaryotic cell cultures (15).

A previous publication suggested that mule deer PrPSc was unable to convert humanized transgenic substrate in PMCA assays (23) and required a further step of in vitro conditioning in deer substrate PMCA before it was able to cross the deer–human molecular barrier (24). However, prions from other species, such as elk (15) and reindeer affected by CWD, appear to be compatible with the human protein in a single round of amplification (as shown in our study). These observations suggest that different deer species affected by CWD could present differing degrees of the olecular compatibility with the normal form of human PrP.

The contribution of the polymorphism at codon 129 of the human PrP gene has been extensively studied and is recognized as a risk factor for Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (4). In cervids, the equivalent codon corresponds to the position 132 encoding methionine or leucine. This polymorphism in the elk gene has been shown to play an important role in CWD susceptibility (25,26). We have investigated the effect of this cervid Prnp polymorphism on the conversion of the humanized transgenic substrate according to the variation in the equivalent PRNP codon 129 polymorphism. Interestingly, only the homologs methionine homozygous seed–substrate reactions could readily convert the human PrP, whereas the heterozygous elk PrPSc was unable to do so, even though comparable amounts of PrPres were used to seed the reaction. In addition, we observed only low levels of human PrPres formation in the reactions seeded with the homozygous methionine (132 MM) and the heterozygous (132 ML) seeds incubated with the other 2 human polymorphic substrates (129 MV and 129 VV). The presence of the amino acid leucine at position 132 of the elk Prnp gene has been attributed to a lower degree of prion conversion compared with methionine on the basis of experiments in mice made transgenic for these polymorphic variants (26). Considering the differences observed for the amplification of the homozygous human methionine substrate by the 2 polymorphic elk seeds (MM and ML), reappraisal of the susceptibility of human PrPC by the full range of cervid polymorphic variants affected by CWD would be warranted.

In light of the recent identification of the first cases of CWD in Europe in a free-ranging reindeer (R. tarandus) in Norway (2), we also decided to evaluate the in vitro conversion potential of CWD in 2 experimentally infected reindeer (18). Formation of human PrPres was readily detectable after a single round of PMCA, and in all 3 humanized polymorphic substrates (MM, MV, and VV). This finding suggests that CWD prions from reindeer could be more compatible with human PrPC generally and might therefore present a greater risk for zoonosis than, for example, CWD prions from white-tailed deer. A more comprehensive comparison of CWD in the affected species, coupled with the polymorphic variations in the human and deer PRNP–Prnp genes, in vivo and in vitro, will be required before firm conclusions can be drawn. Analysis of the Prnp sequence of the CWD reindeer in Norway was reported to be identical to the specimens used in our study (2). This finding raises the possibility of a direct comparison of zoonotic potential between CWD acquired in the wild and that produced in a controlled laboratory setting. (Table).

The prion hypothesis proposes that direct molecular interaction between PrPSc and PrPC is necessary for conversion and prion replication. Accordingly, polymorphic variants of the PrP of host and agent might play a role in determining compatibility and potential zoonotic risk. In this study, we have examined the capacity of the human PrPC to support in vitro conversion by elk, white-tailed deer, and reindeer CWD PrPSc. Our data confirm that elk CWD prions can convert the human PrPC, at least in vitro, and show that the homologous PRNP polymorphisms at codon 129 and 132 in humans and cervids affect conversion efficiency. Other species affected by CWD, particularly caribou or reindeer, also seem able to convert the human PrP. It will be important to determine whether other polymorphic variants found in other CWD-affected Cervidae or perhaps other factors (17) exert similar effects on the ability to convert human PrP and thus affect their zoonotic potential.

Dr. Barria is a research scientist working at the National CJD Research and Surveillance Unit, University of Edinburgh. His research has focused on understanding the molecular basis of a group of fatal neurologic disorders called prion diseases.

Acknowledgments We thank Aru Balachandran for originally providing cervid brain tissues, Abigail Diack and Jean Manson for providing mouse brain tissue, and James Ironside for his critical reading of the manuscript at an early stage.

This report is independent research commissioned and funded by the United Kingdom’s Department of Health Policy Research Programme and the Government of Scotland. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Department of Health or the Government of Scotland.

Author contributions: The study was conceived and designed by M.A.B. and M.W.H. The experiments were conducted by M.A.B. and A.L. Chronic wasting disease brain specimens were provided by G.M. The manuscript was written by M.A.B. and M.W.H. All authors contributed to the editing and revision of the manuscript.



Prion 2017 Conference Abstracts
First evidence of intracranial and peroral transmission of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) into Cynomolgus macaques: a work in progress Stefanie Czub1, Walter Schulz-Schaeffer2, Christiane Stahl-Hennig3, Michael Beekes4, Hermann Schaetzl5 and Dirk Motzkus6 1 
University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine/Canadian Food Inspection Agency; 2Universitatsklinikum des Saarlandes und Medizinische Fakultat der Universitat des Saarlandes; 3 Deutsches Primaten Zentrum/Goettingen; 4 Robert-Koch-Institut Berlin; 5 University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine; 6 presently: Boehringer Ingelheim Veterinary Research Center; previously: Deutsches Primaten Zentrum/Goettingen 
This is a progress report of a project which started in 2009. 
21 cynomolgus macaques were challenged with characterized CWD material from white-tailed deer (WTD) or elk by intracerebral (ic), oral, and skin exposure routes. Additional blood transfusion experiments are supposed to assess the CWD contamination risk of human blood product. Challenge materials originated from symptomatic cervids for ic, skin scarification and partially per oral routes (WTD brain). Challenge material for feeding of muscle derived from preclinical WTD and from preclinical macaques for blood transfusion experiments. We have confirmed that the CWD challenge material contained at least two different CWD agents (brain material) as well as CWD prions in muscle-associated nerves. 
Here we present first data on a group of animals either challenged ic with steel wires or per orally and sacrificed with incubation times ranging from 4.5 to 6.9 years at postmortem. Three animals displayed signs of mild clinical disease, including anxiety, apathy, ataxia and/or tremor. In four animals wasting was observed, two of those had confirmed diabetes. All animals have variable signs of prion neuropathology in spinal cords and brains and by supersensitive IHC, reaction was detected in spinal cord segments of all animals. Protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA), real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuiC) and PET-blot assays to further substantiate these findings are on the way, as well as bioassays in bank voles and transgenic mice. 
At present, a total of 10 animals are sacrificed and read-outs are ongoing. Preclinical incubation of the remaining macaques covers a range from 6.4 to 7.10 years. Based on the species barrier and an incubation time of > 5 years for BSE in macaques and about 10 years for scrapie in macaques, we expected an onset of clinical disease beyond 6 years post inoculation. 
PRION 2017 DECIPHERING NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS ABSTRACTS REFERENCE
8. Even though human TSE‐exposure risk through consumption of game from European cervids can be assumed to be minor, if at all existing, no final conclusion can be drawn due to the overall lack of scientific data. In particular the US data do not clearly exclude the possibility of human (sporadic or familial) TSE development due to consumption of venison. The Working Group thus recognizes a potential risk to consumers if a TSE would be present in European cervids. It might be prudent considering appropriate measures to reduce such a risk, e.g. excluding tissues such as CNS and lymphoid tissues from the human food chain, which would greatly reduce any potential risk for consumers. However, it is stressed that currently, no data regarding a risk of TSE infections from cervid products are available.


SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2019 

Chronic Wasting Disease CWD TSE Prion and THE FEAST 2003 CDC an updated review of the science 2019


TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2014 

Six-year follow-up of a point-source exposure to CWD contaminated venison in an Upstate New York community: risk behaviours and health outcomes 2005–2011

Authors, though, acknowledged the study was limited in geography and sample size and so it couldn't draw a conclusion about the risk to humans. They recommended more study. Dr. Ermias Belay was the report's principal author but he said New York and Oneida County officials are following the proper course by not launching a study. "There's really nothing to monitor presently. No one's sick," Belay said, noting the disease's incubation period in deer and elk is measured in years. "


Transmission Studies

Mule deer transmissions of CWD were by intracerebral inoculation and compared with natural cases {the following was written but with a single line marked through it ''first passage (by this route)}....TSS

resulted in a more rapidly progressive clinical disease with repeated episodes of synocopy ending in coma. One control animal became affected, it is believed through contamination of inoculum (?saline). Further CWD transmissions were carried out by Dick Marsh into ferret, mink and squirrel monkey. Transmission occurred in ALL of these species with the shortest incubation period in the ferret.

snip.... 


Prion Infectivity in Fat of Deer with Chronic Wasting Disease▿ 

Brent Race#, Kimberly Meade-White#, Richard Race and Bruce Chesebro* + Author Affiliations

In mice, prion infectivity was recently detected in fat. Since ruminant fat is consumed by humans and fed to animals, we determined infectivity titers in fat from two CWD-infected deer. Deer fat devoid of muscle contained low levels of CWD infectivity and might be a risk factor for prion infection of other species. 


Prions in Skeletal Muscles of Deer with Chronic Wasting Disease 

Here bioassays in transgenic mice expressing cervid prion protein revealed the presence of infectious prions in skeletal muscles of CWD-infected deer, demonstrating that humans consuming or handling meat from CWD-infected deer are at risk to prion exposure. 


*** now, let’s see what the authors said about this casual link, personal communications years ago, and then the latest on the zoonotic potential from CWD to humans from the TOKYO PRION 2016 CONFERENCE.

see where it is stated NO STRONG evidence. so, does this mean there IS casual evidence ???? “Our conclusion stating that we found no strong evidence of CWD transmission to humans”

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


Subject: TO CDC AND NIH - PUB MED- 3 MORE DEATHS - CWD - YOUNG HUNTERS

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

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 ; 


> However, to date, no CWD infections have been reported in people. 

sporadic, spontaneous CJD, 85%+ of all human TSE, did not just happen. never in scientific literature has this been proven.

if one looks up the word sporadic or spontaneous at pubmed, you will get a laundry list of disease that are classified in such a way;



key word here is 'reported'. science has shown that CWD in humans will look like sporadic CJD. SO, how can one assume that CWD has not already transmitted to humans? they can't, and it's as simple as that. from all recorded science to date, CWD has already transmitted to humans, and it's being misdiagnosed as sporadic CJD. ...terry 

*** LOOKING FOR CWD IN HUMANS AS nvCJD or as an ATYPICAL CJD, LOOKING IN ALL THE WRONG PLACES $$$ ***

> However, to date, no CWD infections have been reported in people.
key word here is ‘reported’. science has shown that CWD in humans will look like sporadic CJD. SO, how can one assume that CWD has not already transmitted to humans? they can’t, and it’s as simple as that. from all recorded science to date, CWD has already transmitted to humans, and it’s being misdiagnosed as sporadic CJD. …terry
*** LOOKING FOR CWD IN HUMANS AS nvCJD or as an ATYPICAL CJD, LOOKING IN ALL THE WRONG PLACES $$$ ***
*** These results would seem to suggest that CWD does indeed have zoonotic potential, at least as judged by the compatibility of CWD prions and their human PrPC target. Furthermore, extrapolation from this simple in vitro assay suggests that if zoonotic CWD occurred, it would most likely effect those of the PRNP codon 129-MM genotype and that the PrPres type would be similar to that found in the most common subtype of sCJD (MM1).***
CWD TSE PRION AND ZOONOTIC, ZOONOSIS, POTENTIAL

Subject: Re: DEER SPONGIFORM ENCEPHALOPATHY SURVEY & HOUND STUDY 

Date: Fri, 18 Oct 2002 23:12:22 +0100 

From: Steve Dealler 

Reply-To: Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Organization: Netscape Online member 

To: BSE-L@ References: 

Dear Terry,

An excellent piece of review as this literature is desperately difficult to get back from Government sites.

What happened with the deer was that an association between deer meat eating and sporadic CJD was found in about 1993. The evidence was not great but did not disappear after several years of asking CJD cases what they had eaten. I think that the work into deer disease largely stopped because it was not helpful to the UK industry...and no specific cases were reported. Well, if you dont look adequately like they are in USA currenly then you wont find any!

Steve Dealler =============== 


''The association between venison eating and risk of CJD shows similar pattern, with regular venison eating associated with a 9 FOLD INCREASE IN RISK OF CJD (p = 0.04).''

CREUTZFELDT JAKOB DISEASE SURVEILLANCE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM THIRD ANNUAL REPORT AUGUST 1994

Consumption of venison and veal was much less widespread among both cases and controls. For both of these meats there was evidence of a trend with increasing frequency of consumption being associated with increasing risk of CJD. (not nvCJD, but sporadic CJD...tss) These associations were largely unchanged when attention was restricted to pairs with data obtained from relatives. ...

Table 9 presents the results of an analysis of these data.

There is STRONG evidence of an association between ‘’regular’’ veal eating and risk of CJD (p = .0.01).

Individuals reported to eat veal on average at least once a year appear to be at 13 TIMES THE RISK of individuals who have never eaten veal.

There is, however, a very wide confidence interval around this estimate. There is no strong evidence that eating veal less than once per year is associated with increased risk of CJD (p = 0.51).

The association between venison eating and risk of CJD shows similar pattern, with regular venison eating associated with a 9 FOLD INCREASE IN RISK OF CJD (p = 0.04).

There is some evidence that risk of CJD INCREASES WITH INCREASING FREQUENCY OF LAMB EATING (p = 0.02).

The evidence for such an association between beef eating and CJD is weaker (p = 0.14). When only controls for whom a relative was interviewed are included, this evidence becomes a little STRONGER (p = 0.08).

snip...

It was found that when veal was included in the model with another exposure, the association between veal and CJD remained statistically significant (p = < 0.05 for all exposures), while the other exposures ceased to be statistically significant (p = > 0.05).

snip...

In conclusion, an analysis of dietary histories revealed statistical associations between various meats/animal products and INCREASED RISK OF CJD. When some account was taken of possible confounding, the association between VEAL EATING AND RISK OF CJD EMERGED AS THE STRONGEST OF THESE ASSOCIATIONS STATISTICALLY. ...

snip...

In the study in the USA, a range of foodstuffs were associated with an increased risk of CJD, including liver consumption which was associated with an apparent SIX-FOLD INCREASE IN THE RISK OF CJD. By comparing the data from 3 studies in relation to this particular dietary factor, the risk of liver consumption became non-significant with an odds ratio of 1.2 (PERSONAL COMMUNICATION, PROFESSOR A. HOFMAN. ERASMUS UNIVERSITY, ROTTERDAM). (???...TSS)

snip...see full report ;




Stephen Dealler is a consultant medical microbiologist deal@airtime.co.uk 

BSE Inquiry Steve Dealler

Management In Confidence

BSE: Private Submission of Bovine Brain Dealler

snip...see full text;

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2019

***> MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN BSE, SCRAPIE, CWD, CJD, TSE PRION A REVIEW 2019


***> ''The association between venison eating and risk of CJD shows similar pattern, with regular venison eating associated with a 9 FOLD INCREASE IN RISK OF CJD (p = 0.04).''

***> In conclusion, sensory symptoms and loss of reflexes in Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome can be explained by neuropathological changes in the spinal cord. We conclude that the sensory symptoms and loss of lower limb reflexes in Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome is due to pathology in the caudal spinal cord. <***

***> The clinical and pathological presentation in macaques was mostly atypical, with a strong emphasis on spinal cord pathology.<*** 

***> The notion that CWD can be transmitted orally into both new-world and old-world non-human primates asks for a careful reevaluation of the zoonotic risk of CWD. <***

***> All animals have variable signs of prion neuropathology in spinal cords and brains and by supersensitive IHC, reaction was detected in spinal cord segments of all animals.<*** 

***> In particular the US data do not clearly exclude the possibility of human (sporadic or familial) TSE development due to consumption of venison. The Working Group thus recognizes a potential risk to consumers if a TSE would be present in European cervids.'' Scientific opinion on chronic wasting disease (II) <***


***Moreover, sporadic disease has never been observed in breeding colonies or primate research laboratories, most notably among hundreds of animals over several decades of study at the National Institutes of Health25, and in nearly twenty older animals continuously housed in our own facility.***

Even if the prevailing view is that sporadic CJD is due to the spontaneous formation of CJD prions, it remains possible that its apparent sporadic nature may, at least in part, result from our limited capacity to identify an environmental origin.


O.05: Transmission of prions to primates after extended silent incubation periods: Implications for BSE and scrapie risk assessment in human populations 

Emmanuel Comoy, Jacqueline Mikol, Valerie Durand, Sophie Luccantoni, Evelyne Correia, Nathalie Lescoutra, Capucine Dehen, and Jean-Philippe Deslys Atomic Energy Commission; Fontenay-aux-Roses, France 

Prion diseases (PD) are the unique neurodegenerative proteinopathies reputed to be transmissible under field conditions since decades. The transmission of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) to humans evidenced that an animal PD might be zoonotic under appropriate conditions. Contrarily, in the absence of obvious (epidemiological or experimental) elements supporting a transmission or genetic predispositions, PD, like the other proteinopathies, are reputed to occur spontaneously (atpical animal prion strains, sporadic CJD summing 80% of human prion cases). 

Non-human primate models provided the first evidences supporting the transmissibiity of human prion strains and the zoonotic potential of BSE. Among them, cynomolgus macaques brought major information for BSE risk assessment for human health (Chen, 2014), according to their phylogenetic proximity to humans and extended lifetime. We used this model to assess the zoonotic potential of other animal PD from bovine, ovine and cervid origins even after very long silent incubation periods. 

*** We recently observed the direct transmission of a natural classical scrapie isolate to macaque after a 10-year silent incubation period, 

***with features similar to some reported for human cases of sporadic CJD, albeit requiring fourfold long incubation than BSE. Scrapie, as recently evoked in humanized mice (Cassard, 2014), 

***is the third potentially zoonotic PD (with BSE and L-type BSE), 

***thus questioning the origin of human sporadic cases. 

We will present an updated panorama of our different transmission studies and discuss the implications of such extended incubation periods on risk assessment of animal PD for human health. 

=============== 

***thus questioning the origin of human sporadic cases*** 

=============== 

***our findings suggest that possible transmission risk of H-type BSE to sheep and human. Bioassay will be required to determine whether the PMCA products are infectious to these animals. 

============== 

PRION 2015 CONFERENCE


***Transmission data also revealed that several scrapie prions propagate in HuPrP-Tg mice with efficiency comparable to that of cattle BSE. While the efficiency of transmission at primary passage was low, subsequent passages resulted in a highly virulent prion disease in both Met129 and Val129 mice. 

***Transmission of the different scrapie isolates in these mice leads to the emergence of prion strain phenotypes that showed similar characteristics to those displayed by MM1 or VV2 sCJD prion. 

***These results demonstrate that scrapie prions have a zoonotic potential and raise new questions about the possible link between animal and human prions. 


PRION 2016 TOKYO

Saturday, April 23, 2016

SCRAPIE WS-01: Prion diseases in animals and zoonotic potential 2016

Prion. 10:S15-S21. 2016 ISSN: 1933-6896 printl 1933-690X online

Taylor & Francis

Prion 2016 Animal Prion Disease Workshop Abstracts

WS-01: Prion diseases in animals and zoonotic potential

Transmission of the different scrapie isolates in these mice leads to the emergence of prion strain phenotypes that showed similar characteristics to those displayed by MM1 or VV2 sCJD prion. 

These results demonstrate that scrapie prions have a zoonotic potential and raise new questions about the possible link between animal and human prions. 


Title: Transmission of scrapie prions to primate after an extended silent incubation period) 

*** In complement to the recent demonstration that humanized mice are susceptible to scrapie, we report here the first observation of direct transmission of a natural classical scrapie isolate to a macaque after a 10-year incubation period. Neuropathologic examination revealed all of the features of a prion disease: spongiform change, neuronal loss, and accumulation of PrPres throughout the CNS. 

*** This observation strengthens the questioning of the harmlessness of scrapie to humans, at a time when protective measures for human and animal health are being dismantled and reduced as c-BSE is considered controlled and being eradicated. 

*** Our results underscore the importance of precautionary and protective measures and the necessity for long-term experimental transmission studies to assess the zoonotic potential of other animal prion strains. 



WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16, 2022 

SHEEP BY-PRODUCTS AND WHAT ABOUT Scrapie TSE PrP and Potential Zoonosis? 


SO, WHO'S UP FOR SOME MORE TSE PRION POKER, WHO'S ALL IN $$$ 

SO, ATYPICAL SCRAPIE ROUGHLY HAS 50 50 CHANCE ATYPICAL SCRAPIE IS CONTAGIOUS, AS NON-CONTAGIOUS, TAKE YOUR PICK, BUT I SAID IT LONG AGO WHEN USDA OIE ET AL MADE ATYPICAL SCRAPIE A LEGAL TRADING COMMODITY, I SAID YOUR PUTTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE, AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THEY DID, and it's called in Texas, TEXAS TSE PRION HOLDEM POKER, WHO'S ALL IN $$$

***> AS is considered more likely (subjective probability range 50–66%) that AS is a non-contagious, rather than a contagious, disease.


FRIDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2022 

House and Senate Send Important Chronic Wasting Disease Legislation to President’s Desk 


Characterization of Classical Sheep Scrapie in White-tailed Deer after Experimental Oronasal Exposure 

Justin J Greenlee, S Jo Moore, Eric D Cassmann, Zoe J Lambert, Robyn D Kokemuller, Jodi D Smith, Robert A Kunkle, Qingzhong Kong, M Heather West Greenlee Author Notes

The Journal of Infectious Diseases, jiac443, https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/jiac443

Published: 08 November 2022 Article history

Abstract

Background

Classic scrapie is a prion disease of sheep and goats that is associated with accumulation of abnormal prion protein (PrPSc) in the central nervous and lymphoid tissues. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is the prion disease of cervids. This study was conducted to determine the susceptibility of white-tailed deer (WTD) to the classic scrapie agent.

Methods

We inoculated WTD (n = 5) by means of a concurrent oral/intranasal exposure with the classic scrapie agent from sheep or oronasally with the classic scrapie agent from goats (n = 6).

Results

All deer exposed to the agent of classic scrapie from sheep accumulated PrPSc. PrPSc was detected in lymphoid tissues at preclinical time points, and necropsies in deer 28 months after inoculation showed clinical signs, spongiform lesions, and widespread PrPSc in neural and lymphoid tissues. Western blots on samples from the brainstem, cerebellum, and lymph nodes of scrapie-infected WTD have a molecular profile similar to CWD and distinct from samples from the cerebral cortex, retina, or the original classic scrapie inoculum. There was no evidence of PrPSc in any of the WTD inoculated with classic scrapie prions from goats.

Conclusions

WTD are susceptible to the agent of classic scrapie from sheep, and differentiation from CWD may be difficult.

cervid, chronic wasting disease, prion disease, scrapie, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, white-tailed deer Issue Section: Major Article 

snip...

DISCUSSION

When WTD were inoculated with the agent of scrapie from sheep, 100% were infected, with widespread evidence of PrPSc in lymphoid and nervous tissues (see summary Figure 5). The predominant molecular profile of abnormal prion protein present in the brainstem and lymph nodes of scrapie-affected deer was similar to that in CWD-affected deer and distinct from the no. 13-7 sheep classic scrapie inoculum. Conversely, when the no. 13-7 inoculum is used to inoculate elk, the molecular profile is similar to the original scrapie inoculum regardless of brain region sampled. There was no evidence of infection in deer that were exposed to scrapie prions from goats. Although the exposure was to less total inoculum, the amount and route were consistent with other successful experiments in sheep [26] and deer [22].

Figure 5.

Study summary. White-tailed deer (WTD) are oronasally susceptible to the agent of scrapie from sheep but not from goats. Unlike elk inoculated with the sheep scrapie agent, the Western blot (WB) profile of samples from deer with scrapie depends on the tissue assessed. The retina and cerebrum have a WB profile consistent with the original scrapie inoculum, while samples from lymph nodes and brainstem at the level of the obex have a molecular profile similar to that of the chronic wasting disease (CWD) agent. When passaged to cervidized mice, the agent of scrapie from WTD has an intermediate incubation time compared with the CWD agent from deer (shorter) or the scrapie agent from sheep (longer). Abbreviation: dpi, days post inoculation. Open in new tab Download slide

Study summary. White-tailed deer (WTD) are oronasally susceptible to the agent of scrapie from sheep but not from goats. Unlike elk inoculated with the sheep scrapie agent, the Western blot (WB) profile of samples from deer with scrapie depends on the tissue assessed. The retina and cerebrum have a WB profile consistent with the original scrapie inoculum, while samples from lymph nodes and brainstem at the level of the obex have a molecular profile similar to that of the chronic wasting disease (CWD) agent. When passaged to cervidized mice, the agent of scrapie from WTD has an intermediate incubation time compared with the CWD agent from deer (shorter) or the scrapie agent from sheep (longer). Abbreviation: dpi, days post inoculation.

Two WB patterns resulted from inoculating WTD with the no. 13-7 scrapie inoculum, and these patterns seem to depend on the anatomic location of the source of the sample used for WB: samples derived from the cerebral cortex or retina resulted in a lower WB profile, whereas those from the brainstem or lymph node resulted in a higher, CWD-like WB profile. When the agent of scrapie from WTD with either the high or low WB profile is passaged to Tg12 mice, the 2 inocula have distinct incubation times. However, this result could be due to different titers of infectivity in these 2 brain regions.

It was unexpected that WTD material from brainstem or cerebrum with distinct WB profiles resulted in similar CWD-like profiles after passage through Tg12 mice. The most likely explanation for this is that even though cerebrum from scrapie-affected deer has the lowest apparent molecular weight WB profile, it is probable that both PrPSc species (low molecular weight and CWD-like) are present in each brain region and that the CWD-like profile becomes predominant on second passage in cervid PRNP because it amplifies preferentially. It also is possible that the no. 13-7 inoculum contains >1 strain of scrapie despite serial passage in the sheep.

Strain mutation is unlikely to occur in all deer, but selection is possible if multiple strains were present in the inoculum. Alternatively, the 2 WB profiles observed may represent varying selective conditions in different neuroanatomic locations, which could possibly be further tested using in vitro methods [32]. Determining whether further passage of scrapie through deer results in adaptation to a more CWD-like phenotype will be the subject of future studies. Identification of a new strain would be significant, as it may mean that there are new transmission characteristics to third-party hosts, such as humans or cattle [33]. In the case of CWD, interspecies transmission alone is sufficient to increase the potential host range of field isolates [34].

WB analysis of archived samples of brain from elk infected with the same isolate of scrapie as the deer in the present study demonstrated that only a single (lower; scrapie-like) WB profile resulted from scrapie-affected elk. This suggests that the PrPSc with the higher WB profile (CWD-like) generated in this experiment may be a result specific to WTD. The retention of a scrapie-like WB profile on transmission of the agent of scrapie to elk supports the theory that the identification of CWD in Norway is not likely due to exposure to scrapie-infected sheep since the CWD case from Norway has a profile similar to that of North American elk CWD rather than the lower pattern of sheep scrapie [4].

While other groups have shown that scrapie prions from sheep are transmissible to WTD by the intravenous route [18], their results differed from ours concerning the WB patterns. Only a single WB pattern was noted in those deer, which was not directly compared with the original scrapie inoculum from sheep or samples derived from WTD with CWD [18]. The difference in results may be due to our use of a US scrapie isolate derived from ARQ/ARQ sheep [35] while the SSBP/1 strain used in Angers et al [18] has the fastest incubation in VRQ/VRQ sheep and does not seem to affect ARQ/ARQ sheep [36]. Results from the current study corroborate previous results obtained with the same scrapie isolate after intracranial inoculation [17] suggesting that the scrapie isolate rather than the route of inoculation is the major factor in the difference in results between studies.

There is precedent for 2 molecular profiles from different brain regions in the same individual. In Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), 2 isoforms of PrPSc are recognized, based on the electrophoretic mobility of the fragments resistant to proteinase K digestion. In PrPSc type 1, the nonglycosylated isoform migrates to the 21-kDa region of the gel, while the type 2 isoform migrates to 19 kDa [37].

There are a number of reports describing the presence of different PrPSc isoforms in different brains regions from single individuals affected by sporadic CJD [38–44], iatrogenic CJD [40], or familial CJD [45]. Furthermore, it appears that the regional deposition of type 1 or type 2 PrPSc (or co-occurrence of both types) is not random, indicating that different brain regions may be more or less permissive to the formation of a particular PrPSc isoform [38, 39]. Preferential formation of different PrPSc isoforms also seems to be influenced by genotype; for example, type 1 is found in the majority of patients with CJD who are MM homozygous at codon 129, while type 2 is more common in those who are MV heterozygous or VV homozygous [46, 47]. The relevance of these observations in sporadic CJD compared with scrapie in WTD requires further investigation.

When using WB analysis to compare samples of brainstem or lymph node from WTD infected with either CWD or scrapie prions, field samples may not allow for differentiation between CWD and scrapie. In the present study, samples from cerebrum or retina of deer infected with scrapie had a WB pattern distinct from any sample from a deer infected with CWD. Using the N-terminal antibody 12B2 allowed further differentiation of the retinal samples from deer with scrapie from CWD-infected counterparts as well as from sheep infected with either scrapie or CWD. The retinas from deer infected with scrapie maintained electrophoretic properties of scrapie while differing in biochemical properties (absence of 12B2 binding), suggesting that scrapie prions from the retinas of WTD have a unique conformation.

There was a high prevalence of S96 PRNP in the deer procured for this study: all were SS96. It is notable that recent genome-wide association analysis demonstrates that G96S has the largest effects on differential susceptibility to CWD of all PRNP polymorphisms [48], but all deer in this study were susceptible to the scrapie agent from sheep. This highlights the potential concern that using a PRNP-based approach to controlling CWD in deer may result in enhanced susceptibilities to other prion isolates. It would be necessary to repeat this study with wild-type deer to understand whether the genotype of the deer we used played any role in the results.

The high attack rate and widespread distribution of PrPSc in nervous and lymphoid tissues of the deer in this study suggest that potential transmission of scrapie to deer presents an ongoing risk to wild and captive WTD. Future studies will focus on whether WTD could serve as a reservoir of infectivity to scrapie-susceptible sheep.

Supplementary Data

Supplementary materials are available at The Journal of Infectious Diseases online. Consisting of data provided by the authors to benefit the reader, the posted materials are not copyedited and are the sole responsibility of the authors, so questions or comments should be addressed to the corresponding author. 


Second passage of chronic wasting disease of mule deer to sheep by intracranial inoculation compared to classical scrapie

Our data suggest that the phenotype of CWD in sheep is indistinguishable from some strains of scrapie in sheep. Given our results, current detection techniques would be unlikely to distinguish CWD in sheep from scrapie in sheep if cross-species transmission occurred naturally. It is unknown if sheep are naturally vulnerable to CWD; however, the susceptibility of sheep after intracranial inoculation and lymphoid accumulation indicates that the species barrier is not absolute.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/10406387211017615

We compared two US classical scrapie strains to CWD in sheep and found that one of these strains is indistinguishable from sheep CWD. These results demonstrate that current diagnostic techniques would be unlikely to distinguish CWD in sheep from scrapie in sheep if cross-species transmission occurred in a natural setting. This research reinforces the need to continue ongoing cross-species transmission studies focusing on oral susceptibility of sheep to CWD and develop techniques to discriminate sheep CWD from sheep scrapie.


''We inoculated WTD by a natural route of exposure (concurrent oral and intranasal (IN); n=5) with a US scrapie isolate. All scrapie-inoculated deer had evidence of PrPSc accumulation.'' Scrapie transmits to white-tailed deer by the oral route and has a molecular profile similar to chronic wasting disease Authors

In summary, this work demonstrates that WTD are susceptible to the agent of scrapie, two distinct molecular profiles of PrPSc are present in the tissues of affected deer, and inoculum of either profile readily passes to deer.


Passage of scrapie to deer results in a new phenotype upon return passage to sheep) Author 

We previously demonstrated that scrapie has a 100% attack rate in white-tailed deer after either intracranial or oral inoculation. 

snip...

This work raises the potential concern that scrapie infected deer could serve as a confounding factor to scrapie eradication programs as scrapie from deer seems to be transmissible to sheep by the oronasal route.


In summary, this work demonstrates that WTD are susceptible to the agent of scrapie, two distinct molecular profiles of PrPSc are present in the tissues of affected deer, and inoculum of either profile type readily passes to deer. 


White-tailed Deer are Susceptible to Scrapie by Natural Route of Infection 

This work demonstrates for the first time that white-tailed deer are susceptible to sheep scrapie by potential natural routes of inoculation. I


PO-039: A comparison of scrapie and chronic wasting disease in white-tailed deer 

Justin Greenlee, Jodi Smith, Eric Nicholson US Dept. Agriculture; Agricultural Research Service, National Animal Disease Center; Ames, IA USA 


This research reinforces the need to continue ongoing cross-species transmission studies focusing on oral susceptibility of sheep to CWD and develop techniques to discriminate sheep CWD from sheep scrapie.


Title: Transmission of scrapie prions to primate after an extended silent incubation period)

*** In complement to the recent demonstration that humanized mice are susceptible to scrapie, we report here the first observation of direct transmission of a natural classical scrapie isolate to a macaque after a 10-year incubation period. Neuropathologic examination revealed all of the features of a prion disease: spongiform change, neuronal loss, and accumulation of PrPres throughout the CNS.

*** This observation strengthens the questioning of the harmlessness of scrapie to humans, at a time when protective measures for human and animal health are being dismantled and reduced as c-BSE is considered controlled and being eradicated.

*** Our results underscore the importance of precautionary and protective measures and the necessity for long-term experimental transmission studies to assess the zoonotic potential of other animal prion strains.


***Transmission data also revealed that several scrapie prions propagate in HuPrP-Tg mice with efficiency comparable to that of cattle BSE. While the efficiency of transmission at primary passage was low, subsequent passages resulted in a highly virulent prion disease in both Met129 and Val129 mice.

***Transmission of the different scrapie isolates in these mice leads to the emergence of prion strain phenotypes that showed similar characteristics to those displayed by MM1 or VV2 sCJD prion.

***These results demonstrate that scrapie prions have a zoonotic potential and raise new questions about the possible link between animal and human prions.


***Moreover, sporadic disease has never been observed in breeding colonies or primate research laboratories, most notably among hundreds of animals over several decades of study at the National Institutes of Health25, and in nearly twenty older animals continuously housed in our own facility.***

Even if the prevailing view is that sporadic CJD is due to the spontaneous formation of CJD prions, it remains possible that its apparent sporadic nature may, at least in part, result from our limited capacity to identify an environmental origin.



Food Saf (Tokyo). 2016 Dec; 4(4): 110–114.

Published online 2016 Dec 7. doi: 10.14252/foodsafetyfscj.2016019

PMCID: PMC6989210

PMID: 32231914

Scrapie in Swine: a Diagnostic Challenge

Justin J. Greenlee,corresponding author 1 Robert A. Kunkle, 1 Jodi D. Smith, 1 and M. Heather West Greenlee 2


''The risk of CJD increases with age; the 2016–2020 average annual rate in the United States was about 5 cases per million in persons 55 years of age or older.''

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease deaths and age-adjusted death rate, United States, 1979–2020*

Occurrence and Transmission

Classic CJD has been recognized since the early 1920s. The majority of cases of CJD (about 85%) are believed to occur sporadically, caused by the spontaneous transformation of normal prion proteins into abnormal prions. This sporadic disease occurs worldwide, including the United States, at a rate of roughly 1 to 2 cases per 1 million population per year. The risk of CJD increases with age; the 2016–2020 average annual rate in the United States was about 5 cases per million in persons 55 years of age or older.

A smaller proportion of patients (5–15%) develop CJD because of inherited mutations of the prion protein gene. These inherited forms include Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker syndrome and fatal familial insomnia. Death records are a good index of the incidence of CJD because the disease is always fatal, and the median duration of illness is about 4–5 months.


MONDAY, APRIL 24, 2023 

2023 CDC REPORTS CJD TSE Prion 5 cases per million in persons 55 years of age or older 




Terry S. Singeltary Sr.

posted by Terry S. Singeltary Sr. at 11:29 AM

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