Mad Cow Disease

-
The variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) crisis, also known as the "human mad cow disease" crisis, was a significant event that followed the "mad cow disease" (BSE) crisis that occurred primarily in the United Kingdom (UK) in the 1980s and 1990s.

vCJD is a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disorder that is believed to be caused by exposure to the abnormal prion proteins that are associated with BSE. The first cases of vCJD were identified in the UK in 1996, and it quickly became apparent that the disease was linked to the consumption of beef from infected cattle.

Prion protein (stained in red) revealed in photomicrograph of scrapie-infected mouse neural tissue. Produced by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

As the number of vCJD cases continued to rise, concerns grew about the potential scale of the outbreak and the potential risks to public health. The UK government initially downplayed the risks of vCJD and resisted calls to implement measures to control the outbreak. However, as the crisis continued to escalate, the government was eventually forced to take action.

Measures to control the spread of vCJD included a ban on the use of certain animal proteins in feed, as well as stricter regulations on the testing and slaughter of infected cattle. The government also took steps to protect the beef industry by launching publicity campaigns to reassure the public that the beef was safe to consume.

The vCJD crisis had a significant impact on the beef industry and caused a loss of consumer confidence in beef products. It also led to significant changes in food safety regulations and increased public awareness of the potential risks associated with the food supply. The European Union also implemented measures to control the spread of the disease and prevent another outbreak in the future.

vCJD cases has decreased dramatically in the last years and it's now considered as a rare disease. However, long-term monitoring is still conducted to ensure that the risk of vCJD is fully understood and to identify any potential new cases.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Dire Dregs Of Days

-
Image
"We are a blessed nation and people!" Yes, there was an election, and Kenyans rushed to congratulate themselves in a manner akin to patting their dicks after an orgasm. The land is a blessed one, it has to be said: it is a land blessed with ignorance, irredeemably corrupt leeches, general political shithousery, drought, inflation, near-theocratic leadership with a touch of the corruptly macabre....it's a long list of blessings. It's a land where wealth simply disappears into the blessed pockets of a few, and, just like the "holy ghost," reappears in the pockets of the same well-heeled elite who are all seemingly acquainted with some fellow named "scratch." High net worth folk tell tales of "rearing chicken" and "selling corn cobs by the roadside," and sell the capitalistic hope of success from "scratch." As an aside, who the hell is this scratch? Can he scratch a few tickets to every scroungers wealth, maybe sate every...
Read more

Palestine

-
Image
Israel has long implemented a policy of demolishing homes belonging to Palestinians accused of killing Israelis. This extends to the extended family of those accused. Basically, it is a cycle of revenge and deprivation. Anyone with a locum of thought can easily see what the Israeli regime is doing: it is a scorched earth policy on steroids. And still the fighting goes on unabated, albeit mostly away from the larger global stage. Apartheid is a policy or system of discrimination on grounds of race. It can loosely apply to systematic segregation on gender and religious basis. Quite obviously, what the Israeli regime is carrying on with and in the Palestinian Territories is a form of apartheid.  Zones of French and British influence and control proposed in the Sykes-Picot Agreement¹ Now, as with everything inane in 20th century history, colonialism played a massive role in the état de choses today. As with India and Pakistani, the British royally bent over and historically...
Read more