Mad Cow-Like Prion Disease - Human-to-Human Transmission

NOTE: The H2H spread is inefficient.

Hard to decide what to do with news like this. Hate to see another panic like what happened with Ebola but this one is HOLY CRAP! important. Here's the study's abstract:

Variably Protease-Sensitive Prionopathy, a Unique Prion Variant with Inefficient Transmission Properties

Abstract

Variably protease-sensitive prionopathy (VPSPr) can occur in persons of all codon 129 genotypes in the human prion protein gene (PRNP) and is characterized by a unique biochemical profile when compared with other human prion diseases. We investigated transmission properties of VPSPr by inoculating transgenic mice expressing human PRNP with brain tissue from 2 persons with the valine-homozygous (VV) and 1 with the heterozygous methionine/valine codon 129 genotype. No clinical signs or vacuolar pathology were observed in any inoculated mice. Small deposits of prion protein accumulated in the brains of inoculated mice after challenge with brain material from VV VPSPr patients. Some of these deposits resembled microplaques that occur in the brains of VPSPr patients. Comparison of these transmission properties with those of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in the same lines of mice indicated that VPSPr has distinct biological properties. Moreover, we established that VPSPr has limited potential for human-to-human transmission.

Here are a few more quotes from the full text version. Note the observation that "Human-to-human transmission of prion diseases is of great concern for public health reasons." Also note that prions' potential for infectivity is described as "limited, but not negligible."

Human prion diseases, also called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, are a group of rare and inevitably fatal neurodegenerative diseases. Prion diseases are unique in that they occur as idiopathic (sporadic), familial, and acquired disorders. ….

In 2008, a novel prion disease, initially referred to as protease-sensitive prionopathy, was reported in 11 patients who had been referred to the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center (Cleveland, OH, USA) during May 2002–January 2006. …The defining feature of this group of patients was the unusual biochemical properties of the abnormal PrP in the brain. Compared with the biochemical properties of PrPres in sCJD, the PrPres in VPSPr was found to be much less resistant to protease digestion. ……The neuropathologic features in this group were also unusual, in particular, the accumulation of microplaques within the cerebellum and thalamus, which stained intensely for PrP.

Since the original description of those 11 cases, 19 additional cases have been reported…

….It is possible that the protease-sensitive and the truncated forms of the abnormal PrP may contribute to the unique neuropathology of VPSPr and may also influence the potential for transmission of disease to other persons.

Human-to-human transmission of prion diseases is of great concern for public health reasons (11–13).

……Prion diseases have the potential to be transmissible between persons, a fact that raises public health concerns, particularly regarding vCJD. Assessing the risk for transmission is a challenge because of the varied nature of prion diseases and conflicting evidence over the mechanisms of transmission.

…… We demonstrate that VPSPr is a disease with biological properties distinct from those of sCJD and with a limited, but not negligible, potential for infectivity. These results demonstrate the importance of continuing surveillance to fully uncover the growing spectrum of human prion diseases.

And let's not forget there are LOTS more prion diseases than just Mad Cow and the "big six." ....Looks like the "Prion Story" is getting way too big to cover up anymore. Any bets there'll be a big war starting soon?

Hate to sensationalize, but this is important. A game-changer. World changing. Known for a good long time no doubt, so the important question is,

"Why is the truth coming out now?"

originally posted by: soficrow
Hate to sensationalize, but this is important. A game-changer. World changing. Known for a good long time no doubt, so the important question is, "Why is the truth coming out now?"

Because today is an ideal day to "bury bad news"as the western world reels with what has happened in France.

H2H prion disease could be nightmare-some of the accounts of the symptoms of prion disease are utterly horrific,patients slowly descending into madness as their bodies fail and their brains are eaten.
They need to develop a test for this new variant,and fast.

Not good news,soficrow.

Great.

First it was "don't eat cows from prion infested herds," then "don't eat cows from prion infested countries..." then "don't eat cows," then it was "probably not a good idea to eat people's brains" then "don't eat people..." now it's don't go outside without a cleansuit, get near people or use products with cows in it... sheesh.

I kid because I can't think of a proper response to a disease that eats brains... perhaps due to prions in my own thinker.

Whether one blames a bio-lab whipping up population control methods, or the more likely lab of nature itself creating insidious death machines... the results are the same.

Life is a disease nature is working to cure.

Wow............Human to human transmission......just when I needed some excitement....NOT

a reply to: Silcone Synapse

Thanks-you answered part of the question I had about the effects of this thing on humans.

The other part of the question is-does it make them violent?

Not to over dramatize-but my first thought after reading OP's post was a 28 Days Later scenario.

a reply to: Silcone Synapse

Not good news, no. My research goes back decades and suggests H2H transmission has been suspected or known for much of that time. But the problem -prions' existence and H2H transmission- has been denied because there was no solution in sight. [And yes, to protect industry, and potential victims, and 'social order.'] But now there's what looks like a solution - successful vaccine in the pike:

First successful vaccination against 'mad cow'-like wasting disease in deer

Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and elsewhere say that a vaccination they have developed to fight a brain-based, wasting syndrome among deer and other animals may hold promise on two additional fronts: Protecting U.S. livestock from contracting the disease, and preventing similar brain infections in humans.

I don't buy it but people need hope.




PS. Yes, the France thing will probably be levered to start the needed big war.. S& "up" btw.

So give me a little latitude here because this is rather new to me.

I don't have time to wade through the scientifically worded reports to try and pull this answer out, so maybe one of you already know. Have there been any reported cases of human-to-human transmission, or is this just saying that they've now discovered through lab tests that it is a possibility?

Either way, it's a scary scenario.

a reply to: Baddogma

There are prions everywhere - in plants, goats, yeast and fungi, chickens, microbes, more. [The big focus on cannibalism was always a PR cover-up.]

Fact is, all the evidence suggests prions are an epigenetic evolutionary mechanism - a first responder to environmental change.

In other words, poisons in our environment hurt us because they make our proteins adapt and change, which can change us in not so good ways (we get sick because things aren't working the way they should).


S&

originally posted by: lostbook
Wow............Human to human transmission......just when I needed some excitement....NOT

The writing was on the wall when it was discovered that antibiotic resistance in bacteria spread horizontally like a cold, not vertically from generation-to-generation.

Again, NOTE: Prions are one epigenetic evolutionary mechanism that helps organisms adapt to environmental change.

a reply to: westcoast

...Have there been any reported cases of human-to-human transmission, or is this just saying that they've now discovered through lab tests that it is a possibility?

The study and results are based on examining the brain tissues of 11 dead patients, plus 19 additional cases (not clear if these examinations were postmortem).

Scary, yes - but it's good that this research is finally going public. Open Access!

Hi Soficrow, I have A Gym Friend who used to work for Monsanto and now works for Kraft in Their Legal Department and I know of a series of meetings outside of The US on this specific subject. Weather or not the items they are selling to us in our Food Chain are infected, can be transmitted to us and what is their liability if it is provably transmitted to us through their products. So, I do know it is on The Corporate Radar at least. Peace arjunanda a reply to: soficrow

I can see this one day turning into most of the world having these diseases and all due to how long it was covered up. I always suspected Alzheimer's was mad cow manifest in humans and that one day we would realize just how many people were affected by these prions. This just makes things all the worse and confirms my initial fears.

a reply to: arjunanda

Thanks for the info. S& ...No doubt there are prions throughout our food chain - and as a side note, I'm sure Monsanto creates the suckers as a byproduct. [Note re terms: Food with prions is contaminated; prions transmitted H2H are infectious.]

The whole liability issue is what kept gags on everyone about prions for the past decades - nobody wanted to pay up. Or clean up, for that matter. But at this point, prions really are everywhere - in our air, water, food, soil - so the legal argument is, "Everyone does it, they're everywhere and so no one is liable." [That's how the US cattle industry shut Oprah up, btw, and got her Mad Cow expose pulled and cancelled - the cattlemen (rightly) claimed they weren't the only source of prions.]

Then there's the mass vaccination factor. Vaccines use cow products in production, so the FDA set up a Mad Cow Committee several years ago. The transcript said the Committee did not recommend filtering for Mad Cow prions because there were so many prions, and so many different strains of prions there was no point trying to filter out just one prion strain.

.....It's been a long and complicated road.

One important issue to consider (which no doubt had all last century's analysts up at night) is the "Leprosy Effect." ...Not a problem any more because we can't quarantine the entire nation/world. Too late.

a reply to: RickyD

Yes. One of the reasons it was covered up (besides to avoid liability) was to prevent public panic and avoid having to quarantine huge numbers of people. Now, most everyone already has been exposed. ....Vaccinations alone would have done it.

And you're right, Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia likely are prion diseases. The following info came out in March, but is suddenly hitting the news. Not sure why, except maybe to reassure men?

Women are at the epicenter of the Alzheimer’s crisis. Almost two-thirds of American seniors living with Alzheimer’s disease are women.
• An estimated 3.2 million women aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s.
• Among those aged 71 and older, 16 percent of women have Alzheimer’s and other dementias, compared with 11 percent of men.
• At age 65, women without Alzheimer’s have more than a one in six chance of developing Alzheimer’s during the remainder of their lives, compared with a one in 11 chance for men.

originally posted by: FalcoFan
a reply to: Silcone Synapse

Thanks-you answered part of the question I had about the effects of this thing on humans.

The other part of the question is-does it make them violent?

Not to over dramatize-but my first thought after reading OP's post was a 28 Days Later scenario.

I haven't ever read of any sufferer becoming violent-with NvCJD(mad cow disease)the people unlucky enough to have become infected lost the control of motor function,resulting in the same horrible movements you may have seen in "mad cow"videos on the news years back-but humans also went mad,had terrifying hallucinations and screamed alot near the end.

Brain scans of the infected showed the appearance of "tunnels" drilled throughout the brain as protiens break apart.

A truly horrific way to go.

Another form of prion disease was known as "new guinea laughing sickness"-aquired by head hunting tribesmen who would eat the brains of their vanquished enemies..leading to mutated protiens-prions,just like the mad cows were fed on other cows brains did the same in the UK and elsewhere back in the day.

But more worrying is that prions can exist in all foods-meat,veg,leaves,anything.

Soficrow knows loads more about the science of it than I do-I have probably written a few mistakes into my post,but I just read about this kind of thing,and have a general idea.

a reply to: Silcone Synapse

S& ....A quick fyi.

Dementia and aggressive behaviour

People with dementia may sometimes behave aggressively, either physically or verbally, and this can be very distressing for the person and for their carer, family and friends. This factsheet explains why a person might act aggressively. It gives practical tips that carers can use to help prevent and manage aggressive behaviour. It also looks at the types of support that may be available.

What is aggressive behaviour?
Aggressive behaviour is not unique to people with dementia. However, more than one third of people living with dementia have at times behaved aggressively, particularly in the moderate to severe stages of the condition. ....

Aggressive behaviour may be:
verbal – eg swearing, screaming, shouting, making threats
physical – eg hitting, pinching, scratching, hair-pulling, biting.

Haven't heard this old stuff since the turn of the century. Mad cow resurfaces, pardon me if I am not afraid.

originally posted by: damwel
....pardon me if I am not afraid.

No problem. Lots of members here just want an emoto-fix, but some of us are into objective awareness. I like science and biology, and am especially interested in research showing how prions play a role in our adaptation and evolution.

originally posted by: damwel
Haven't heard this old stuff since the turn of the century. Mad cow resurfaces, pardon me if I am not afraid.

If a similar disease can be transmitted by anyone to anyone else,by a sneeze,a kiss or a handshake-would that begin to change your mind as to the serious nature of this news?

Its not just about burgers and steak anymore.