| Canada confirms 5th case of Mad Cow |
Print this story |
A fresh case of BSE - bovine spongiform encephalopathy has been reported in Canada on Sunday which is the fifth Canadian case to be exposed in the past three years.
Canada’s fifth case of Mad Cow disease since May 2003 was confirmed by the Federal Officials, when the United States closed its border to Canadian beef after sick cows were found in Canada, that resulted in a controversial ban of Canadian beef, which costed the nation $7 billion in exports.
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy is the acronym of BSE in which Bovine means "cow", spongiform means "sponge-like", and encephalopathy means "brain disease". It is a progressive neurological disorder of cattle that results from infection by an unconventional transmissible agent termed a prion. The nature of the transmissible agent is not well understood. Presently, the most accepted theory is that the agent is a modified form of a normal cell surface component known as prion protein. The pathogenic form of the protein is both less soluble and more resistant to enzyme degradation than the normal form.
Further experimental tests by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency confirmed that the six-year-old dairy cow from the Fraser Valley in British Columbia is positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The latest victim was identified on a Fraser Valley farm through a national surveillance program that has tested about 100,000 cattle in the past few years.
Although the fifth Canadian case of BSE is verified, the experts say the discovery is unlikely to lead to a ban on sales to the United States, the country’s biggest beef export market.
Canada’s Food Inspection Agency said that the finding does not affect the safety of Canadian beef, as no part of the animal entered the human food or animal feed systems. Last month, all eight Canadian beef processing plants that export to Japan were given a clean bill of health by Japanese inspectors. Intake of contaminated meat products has been linked to the rare but fatal variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans.
However, Mike Johanns- U.S. Agriculture Secretary, moved rapidly yesterday to reassure Canadian beef farmers that the latest phenomenon of BSE is improbable to change access to the vital U.S. market. He said, "Information gathered through this investigation will help us to determine what, if any, impact this should have on our beef and live cattle trade with Canada," further added, "Based on the information currently available, I do not anticipate a change in the status of our trade."
United States had shut off its boundary line to Canadian beef three years ago after several BSE cases were detected in Canadian cows. Business in meat and younger cows, which are believed to be less influenced by the disease, resumed last June. The U.S. border still remains sealed for cattle more than 30 months of age, as well as meat products from such animals.
Meat infected with BSE has been connected with the deaths of more than 150 people, mostly in Britain.
Nevertheless, the United States has accepted the invitation of Canada in which the federal Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl of Canada invited the United States to participate in follow-up testing of the B.C. case. Mike Johanns said that United States has agreed to dispatch an animal health expert to the Fraser Valley today to assess Canada’s handling of the situation.
Dennis Laycraft, executive vice-president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, after reaching Calgary city in Alberta, Canada said, "We are getting rewarded by the fact that we have been proactive for the last 15 years." He said that Canada has finally honored for being tough and honest about dealing with mad cow disease. Canada had tested 57,768 animals in 2005 and in the first three months of 2006, almost 17,000 cattle were tested.
Canada has ratified five cases of BSE since 2003, so far, including one in a cow imported from the United Kingdom. In the meantime, the United States has confirmed three cases, which included one cow imported from Canada.
|
| Second face transplant, First of China - Apr 15, 2006 3:42 IST |
|
A Chinese, whose face was badly spoiled after an attack by a black bear, was recovering today after receiving a partial face transplant on Friday.
|
| Beware, Noisy Sleepers! - Apr 11, 2006 15:24 IST |
|
|
A research conducted at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital medical centre in Ohio has revealed that apart from the fun snoring is linked with behavioral problems, mental impairment, and heart and metabolic disease. A study conducted on 12 months old kids has found that children whose Mother and Father - at least one parent snores have three times increased risk of being noisy sleepers themselves than kids whose moms or dads are silent sleepers.
|
| Lack of Doctors in Fight against Diseases - UN - Apr 9, 2006 11:57 IST |
|
|
Geneva -- The UN health agency on Friday has issued a statement saying that there is a global shortage of health workers. "The Global population is growing, but the number of health workers is stagnating or even falling in many of the places where they are needed most." said Mr. Lee Jong-wook, Director General of the World Health Organization.
|
| Bird Flu now in Scotland - Apr 7, 2006 11:28 IST |
|
|
Scotland has reported its first case of Bird Flu. A dead swan has tested positive for the dreaded H5N1 strain of Bird Flu. The confirmation of this news by the Scottish executive brings the UK into the count of countries affected by this deadly disease.
|
| Sleep Disorders are Widespread in U.S. - Apr 5, 2006 12:11 IST |
|
|
Wakeful nights may force your blood pressure to shoot sky high, as per the study conducted by the Researchers at Columbia University in New York. As per the study, if you’re middle age and sleep five or fewer hours a night, you may be increasing your risk of higher blood pressure and increasing heart rate.
|
| Laboratory-engineered Bladders Successfully Implanted - Apr 4, 2006 17:46 IST |
|
|
In a significant study the US researchers say that the seven patients in the US have been given the first laboratory-engineered bladders whose own organs were defective. The new bladders have been grown from a patient’s own cells and successfully implanted into children.
|
| Mumps Epidemic hits Iowa with record number of cases - Apr 1, 2006 14:38 IST |
|
|
Mumps - a viral infection epidemic is sweeping across Iowa State in the United States’ biggest outbreak in at least 17 years, frustrating health officials and distressing parents.
|
|
|
|
|
