Concerns were raised after the disease was detected in animals in Yellowstone Park
US scientists have raised alarm over rising cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) among wildlife in North America, and warned that the deadly virus could spread to humans.
CWD, also known as “zombie deer disease,” is caused by prions, an abnormal and infectious pathogen that changes the brain and nervous system of its host and causes infected animals to drool, be lethargic, stumble, and stare blankly.
Experts describe this disease as: “slow disaster” in The Guardian’s latest report. Dr. Cory Anderson, a CWD researcher at the University of Minnesota, explains that it is a disease “always fatal, incurable and highly contagious” a warning that eradicating a disease that has infected the environment is almost impossible. The researchers also noted that CWD is resistant to disinfectants, formaldehyde, radiation and burning at 600°C and can persist in soil or surfaces for years.
Last year, the disease was detected in about 800 samples taken from deer, elk and elk across Wyoming, according to Breanna Ball of the state Game and Fish Department. He told The Guardian that infection rates had increased compared to previous years.
Scientists are particularly concerned because the disease appears to have entered Yellowstone National Park in recent months. Former Chief of Animal Health at the US Federal Fish and Wildlife Service, Dr. Thomas Roffe, explains that the park’s ecosystem now contains the continent’s largest and most diverse large wild mammals.
“This is a disease that has enormous ecological consequences.” Roffe said failure to curb the spread of the disease means millions of people who visit Yellowstone each year could soon see the impacts of CWD firsthand.
A U.S. Geological Survey release earlier this month showed the disease is now present in 32 states and three provinces in Canada.
So far, no cases of CWD transmission to humans have been reported, although the Alliance for Public Wildlife estimates that as many as 15,000 infected animals were eaten by humans in 2017.
However, epidemiologists in the US and Canada warn that it may only be a matter of time, as the disease belongs to a group of deadly neurological disorders that includes the notorious mad cow disease, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).
The BSE outbreak in the UK in the 1980s and 1990s led to the slaughter of more than 4 million cattle and the deaths of 178 people who contracted the human variant of the disease, vCJD, from eating infected beef.
“We are talking about the potential for something similar to happen. “No one is saying this will definitely happen, but it is important for people to be prepared,” he added. Anderson said.
2023-12-25 16:57:44
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