BSE: Science & research - Research into live animal tests that use surrogate markers for TSE infection (i.e. non-PrPSc)
Defra has funded work aimed at identifying and characterising novel surrogate markers as indicators for TSE infection. This area of work includes approaches such as: transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics, which aim to detect differences in the amounts of different messenger RNAs, proteins, or other chemicals in a TSE affected animal compared with a healthy animal. Research has focused on identifying non-PrPSc markers in fluids such as blood to work towards the development of a TSE test for live animals.
To date none of these methods have led to the development of an approved diagnostic test therefore PrPSc remains the best TSE disease marker for TSEs.
Examples of recent / current research in this area
- Two proteins have recently been found to have profoundly increased levels in preclinical cases of CJD. One of these proteins has been found to be elevated in the urine of patients suffering from sporadic CJD. Defra-funded research is underway to determine whether these 2 proteins can also act as markers of TSE disease in cattle and sheep (project SE2005).
- Ongoing research is using a transcriptomic approach to look for altered expression of genes in white blood cells in cattle infected with BSE. This could identify novel markers for TSE disease (project SE1786).
- BSE-infected cattle appear to have high levels of lactic acid and changes in the ratio of muscle glycogen to plasma lactate, indicating increased anaerobic respiration, consistent with an exaggerated “flight or fight” response to stress, in diseased animals (project SE1763).
- Manganese levels have been shown to be elevated in blood of cattle naturally or experimentally infected with BSE and in sheep experimentally infected with scrapie (project SE1774).
Links to other information
- Food Standards Agency - TSE research - includes research into the erythroid-associated factor (ERAF) and metabolomics
- Development of live animal TSE tests that detects PrPSc
Page last modified: 7 March, 2008