This morning, we read this tweet by University of Minnesota scientist Peter Larsen:
Excited to share @UMN_MNPRO’s latest #CWD 🦌 #research. We can detect CWD prions in 🦌 muscles using RT-QuIC. We hope this leads to future food-safety tests that can help prevent prions from entering food-chains. https://t.co/he0TSujGfj @mnenrtf @UMN_MAES @UMNresearch #mnleg pic.twitter.com/UaWdgGjJH6
— Peter Larsen (@peter_a_larsen) August 18, 2021
Clicking through on the link, we learned in the academic paper from Nature Scientific Reports, RT‑QuIC detection of CWD prion seeding activity in white‑tailed deer muscle tissues:
...Cervid skeletal muscles are consumed by a growing population of hunters and restaurant clientele and have become a common ingredient in pet food (e.g., commercial cat and dog food). At the time of this publication, there are no guidelines regarding venison-based detection of CWD and associated food-product surveillance. This observation, combined with the limitations of existing CWD diagnostic tools (e.g., ELISA and IHC), has resulted in a situation whereby venison processing can occur without the knowledge of an animal’s CWD status, and it is estimated that at least 15,000 CWD positive cervids are consumed in the USA annually. Underscoring this statistic was a well-documented 2005 exposure event in which over 200 participants at a Sportsmen’s feast consumed CWD-positive venison33. Current estimates indicate a 20–50% CWD prevalence rate in harvested WTD from focal areas of southern Wisconsin, however, only 1 out of 3 are tested for the disease. Collectively, these observations highlight the need for post-harvest production-level monitoring of cervid products used for human and animal consumption.
Here, we examine the utility of RT-QuIC for the detection of CWD prions within a broad set of WTD skeletal muscle tissues, including those frequently used for both human and animal consumption. We report the RT-QuIC results for muscles sampled from the neck (brachiocephalicus/sternocephalicus) of wild WTD with known CWD status. Further, we investigated whether CWD prion deposition is limited to certain groups of muscles or if it is more generalized by using multiple WTD skeletal muscle groups across the body, including muscles from the tongue, forelimb (suprascapularis), backstrap (longissimus dorsi), tenderloin (psoas major), and hindlimb (semimembranosus/semitendinosus) from both wild and farmed CWD positive animals independently determined by ELISA and/or IHC.
Yes, we thought that might get readers' attention. Here's a PDF of the article itself, since we removed the citations from the text we quoted above.
Nature/Scientific Reports: RT‑QuIC detection of CWD prion seeding activity in white‑tailed deer muscle ti... uploaded by Sally Jo Sorensen on Scribd
Good news if this helps keep CWD prions out of the human and pet food supply.
Related posts:
- MNReformer Radio podcast interviews Jamie Becker-Finn on Chronic Wasting Disease politics
- Listen to MN House environment committee chair Rep. Rick Hansen talk CWD on Matt McNeil Show
- Special Board of Animal Health meeting to review farmed Cervidae rulemaking postponed
- Bad news from the North: CWD sweeps through Alberta & Saskatchewan deer & elk herds
- Forum News Service: MN Deerhunters Association wants to end deer farming
- Just in: House DFL Lawmakers urge resignation of Minnesota Board of Animal Health President
- Star Tribune: Deer farming and "CWD-infested dump site on public land" in Beltrami County
- Are deer farmers posing against MN DNR rule pausing movement of captive whitetails?
- MN DNR temporarily bans movement of farmed whitetails in state to protect wild deer health
- 5 more MN deer farm herds exposed to CWD; Beltrami carcass dump site inquiry continues
- News release: U of M testing finds presence of CWD prions at Beltrami Co. carcass dump site
- BAH: Southern Minnesota CWD investigation identifies new infection in Beltrami County
- Concerned about CWD in MN deer? Learn about new research from MNPRO's Peter Larsen
- Some of the science at the center of Update on Chronic Wasting Disease Efforts hearing
- VIDEO: MNHouse passes bill for process to extend funding for ENRTF projects for one year
- Session Daily: Experts want to study how CWD flows in state's waterways
- Sen. Andrew Lang seems behind the curve on current funding & progress of CWD test research
- VIDEO: University of Minnesota scientists share CWD research, search for test with lawmakers
- Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund plan from U of M for CWD diagnostic test
- Peter Larsen slideshow: Development of Advanced Diagnostic Tests for CWD by U of M
Photo: A wild white-tailed buck.
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