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USDA probes possible third case of mad cow disease

Posted on: Wednesday, 27 July 2005, 15:41 CDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A 12-year-old animal suspected of having mad cow disease will be retested by animal health laboratories in Britain and Iowa for confirmation of what would be America's third case, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Wednesday.

Final test results are expected early next week.

USDA Chief Veterinarian John Clifford said the suspect animal, which was destroyed after having trouble giving birth in April, produced an inconclusive result in an initial round of testing for the brain-wasting disease.

"USDA is conducting further testing at the National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa, in consultation with experts from the international reference laboratory in Weybridge, England," he told reporters.

"We are also sending samples from this animal to the Weybridge laboratory for further testing. It is important to note that this animal poses no threat to our food supply because it did not enter the human food or animal feed chains," Clifford said.

Clifford described the suspect animal as U.S.-born, but refused to identify where it had lived.

America's second case of mad cow disease -- its first in a native animal -- was confirmed last month. That animal, a 12-year-old Texas cow, tested positive for the brain wasting disease after initially returning inconclusive results.

VET "FORGOT" TO SEND SAMPLE

The latest case also involves confusion over test procedures.

A local veterinarian who submitted the cow's brain sample to the USDA first treated it with a preservative, making it impossible to conduct a sophisticated test known as the Western blot, Clifford said. USDA scientists can still conduct an immunohistochemistry (IHC) test, but they cannot use the Western blot test for a comparison.

In addition, the veterinarian obtained the brain sample in April but did not send it to the USDA until a few days ago, Clifford said, because he "simply forgot to send it in."

The U.S. cattle industry said the suspect cow never entered the human food supply.

"It is important to remember that the U.S. government and the beef industry have put science-based precautions in place over the past 15 years to ensure our beef remains safe from BSE," said Terry Stokes, chief executive of the national Cattlemen's Beef Association.

Meanwhile, the suspect animal's herd has not been quarantined, Clifford said.

"We do not have a hold order on the location at this time. We have not called this a case of BSE. At the time that we would do that it would be appropriate for us to put a hold order only for a length of time for us to look at other animals of interest that may be in that herd."

The first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease discovered in the United States was in December 2003, in a Washington state dairy cow imported from Canada. In response, the USDA adopted several new safeguards including an increase in testing U.S. cattle for the disease, a ban on using crippled or downer cattle in the human food supply, and a ban on using the brain, eyes and small intestines of older cattle in human food.

That case prompted major beef trading partners like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan to close their borders, shutting off billions of dollars worth of U.S. beef imports.

The latest incidents come as Bush administration officials had started to make optimistic comments about persuading those countries to start buying U.S. beef once more.

Clifford said he did not think the new investigation would affect trade negotiations.

"Japan has had 20 cases of BSE," he said. "We would hope this would not have any impact on our negotiations. Both our animals were born prior to the feed ban."

The USDA also recently won its appeal to start imports of live young Canadian cattle for the first time in two years, arguing against protests from ranchers and consumer groups that Canada's safeguards against the disease were adequate.

Source: REUTERS

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