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At one time, cattle were fed the unwanted parts of ground up sheep. Some of those cows became infected with mad cow disease. Mad cow disease spread to humans. Cattle were also fed parts of ground up cow parts, cows eating ground up cattle were infected with that disease.
The breakthrough came in New Guinea. There, women and children would eat the brains of dead people. Men would not. Women and children would catch a disease similar to mad cow disease. Men would not. That made it obvious that the disease came from something common to women and children and not to men. Since they behaved the same as nearby groups except for eating the brains of dead people, that had to be the difference. The only difference in the brains of the dead people with mad cow disease and those without mad cow disease was the prions.
This was then tested in England where mad cow disease was common. The only difference between cows with mad cow disease and those without mad cow disease were the same prions. The people with mad cow disease had the same prions in their brains.
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∙ 14y ago
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What is the pathogen that causes Mad Cow Disease?
A prion, or misfolded protein caused by genetic mutation.
What are ineffective proteins known as?
They are known as prions and cause many diseases such as Mad Cow Disease and Creutzfelt-Jacob disease.
What is a disease in cattle associated with prions?
One disease of cattle caused by a prion is BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) aka Mad Cow Disease
What is another name for prion disease?
A prion is a misfolded protein that is considered an infectious agent because they cause properly folded proteins to convert into the misfolded, prion form. In humans, prions cause Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. In cattle, prions cause mad-cow disease.
What are importance of prions?
PrionsA prion is an infectious protein that is misfolded. These proteins can aggregate in the brain and other neural tissue, forming amyloids. Diseases associated with prions include bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease), scrapie, kuru, chronic wasting disease, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Prions are still poorly understood by researchers, and prion diseases (transmissible spongiform encephalopathies) remain untreatable.
What is the likely causative microorganism in mad cow disease?
Prions.
Can mad cow disease by identified by a gram stain?
Mad Cow Disease cannot be identified by a gram stain. Mad Cow Disease is caused by prions, incorrectly folded proteins. Gram staining is a way to separate bacteria into two groups - positive and negative - and cannot be used to identify prions, since prions are not bacteria.
What is the causes mad cow disease?
infectious proteins called prions
How is Prion detected in animals?
Prions are a relatively newly discovered infectious agent that consists primarily of protein. It is believed that prions are the transmissible cause for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, otherwise known as "mad cow disease." There is no current evidence to suggest that animals are capable of "detecting" prions.
What is the pathogen that causes Mad Cow Disease?
A prion, or misfolded protein caused by genetic mutation.
Can you build up a resistance to mad cow disease?
No. Mad Cow Disease is caused by prions, or misfolded proteins, not bacteria or viruses. Your immune system cannot nor have any means of fighting these prions because they are not recognized by the immune system as a threat.
What are ineffective proteins known as?
They are known as prions and cause many diseases such as Mad Cow Disease and Creutzfelt-Jacob disease.
What is a disease in cattle associated with prions?
One disease of cattle caused by a prion is BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) aka Mad Cow Disease
Can you catch mad cow disease from person to person?
Yes, that is precisely how you contract mad cow.
What are the names of the bad proteins?
The infectious proteins (not made by you) are called prions. An example of this is the mad cow disease.
Is mad cow disease caused by microbes?
No. They're caused by prions, which are FAR tinier than microbes.
What is a protein that can cause infection or disease?
Prions can cause an infection. They are simple proteins that can replicate under the right circumstances and one of them causes Mad Cow disease.
