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Roh IS, Kim YC, Won SY, Jeong MJ, Park KJ, Park HC, Lee YR, Kang HE, Sohn HJ, Jeong BH. The first report of a strong association between genetic polymorphisms of the prion protein gene (PRNP) and susceptibility to chronic wasting disease (CWD) in sika deer (Cervus nippon). Transbound Emerg Dis 2022; 69:e2073-e2083. [PMID: 35349210 DOI: 10.1111/tbed.14543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Revised: 03/16/2022] [Accepted: 03/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Prion diseases are incurable neurodegenerative disorders caused by proteinase K-resistant prion protein (PrPSc ) derived from normal prion protein (PrPC ) encoded by the prion protein gene (PRNP). Although the cervid PRNP gene plays a pivotal role in the pathological mechanism of chronic wasting disease (CWD), there is no existing association analysis between susceptibility to CWD and genetic polymorphisms of the PRNP gene in sika deer. We investigated genetic polymorphisms of the PRNP gene using amplicon sequencing in sika deer. In addition, to identify a genetic susceptibility factor, we compared genotype, allele and haplotype frequencies of the PRNP gene between CWD-positive and CWD-negative sika deer. Furthermore, to assess the effect of the genetic polymorphisms on sika deer prion protein (PrP), we performed in silico analysis using PolyPhen-2, PROVEAN and AMYCO. Finally, we analyzed the tertiary structure and electrostatic potential of sika deer PrP based on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) using the SWISS-MODEL and Swiss-PdbViewer programs. We found a total of 24 SNPs of the PRNP gene including 22 novel SNPs (10 synonymous SNPs and 12 non-synonymous SNPs) in sika deer. Among the non-synonymous SNPs, we found a strong association of the susceptibility to CWD with c.56G>A (Ser19Asn). In addition, we found that c.56G>A (Ser19Asn), c.296A>T (His99Leu) and c.560T>A (Val187Asp) were predicted to have damaging effects on sika deer PrP. Furthermore, we observed significant alterations in the electrostatic potential of sika deer PrP by genetic polymorphisms of the 187Asp allele. To the best of our knowledge, this was the first association study between genetic polymorphisms of the PRNP gene and susceptibility to CWD in sika deer. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- In-Soon Roh
- Reference Laboratory for CWD, Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea
| | - Yong-Chan Kim
- Korea Zoonosis Research Institute, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan, 54531, Republic of Korea.,Department of Bioactive Material Sciences and Institute for Molecular Biology and Genetics, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Sae-Young Won
- Korea Zoonosis Research Institute, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan, 54531, Republic of Korea.,Department of Bioactive Material Sciences and Institute for Molecular Biology and Genetics, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Min-Ju Jeong
- Korea Zoonosis Research Institute, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan, 54531, Republic of Korea.,Department of Bioactive Material Sciences and Institute for Molecular Biology and Genetics, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyung-Je Park
- Reference Laboratory for CWD, Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea
| | - Hoo-Chang Park
- Reference Laboratory for CWD, Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea
| | - Yu-Ran Lee
- Reference Laboratory for CWD, Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea
| | - Hae-Eun Kang
- Reference Laboratory for CWD, Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyun-Joo Sohn
- Reference Laboratory for CWD, Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea
| | - Byung-Hoon Jeong
- Korea Zoonosis Research Institute, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan, 54531, Republic of Korea.,Department of Bioactive Material Sciences and Institute for Molecular Biology and Genetics, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea
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2
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Tennant JM, Li M, Henderson DM, Tyer ML, Denkers ND, Haley NJ, Mathiason CK, Hoover EA. Shedding and stability of CWD prion seeding activity in cervid feces. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0227094. [PMID: 32126066 PMCID: PMC7053746 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0227094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2019] [Accepted: 12/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
CWD is an emergent prion disease that now affects cervid species on three continents. CWD is efficiently spread in wild and captive populations, likely through both direct animal contact and environmental contamination. Here, by longitudinally assaying in feces of CWD-exposed white-tailed deer by RT-QuIC, we demonstrate fecal shedding of prion seeding activity months before onset of clinical symptoms and continuing throughout the disease course. We also examine the impact of simulated environmental conditions such as repeated freeze-thaw cycles and desiccation on fecal prion seeding activity. We found that while multiple (n = 7) freeze-thaw cycles substantially decreased fecal seeding activity, desiccation had little to no effect on seeding activity. Finally, we examined whether RT-QuIC testing of landscape fecal deposits could distinguish two premises with substantial known CWD prevalence from one in which no CWD-infected animals had been detected. In the above pilot study, this distinction was possible. We conclude that fecal shedding of CWD prions occurs over much of the disease course, that environmental factors influence prion seeding activity, and that it is feasible to detect fecal prion contamination using RT-QuIC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanne M. Tennant
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Manci Li
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Davin M. Henderson
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Margaret L. Tyer
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Nathaniel D. Denkers
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Nicholas J. Haley
- Midwestern University, College of Graduate Studies, Glendale, AZ, United States of America
| | - Candace K. Mathiason
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
| | - Edward A. Hoover
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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3
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Moore SJ, Smith JD, Richt JA, Greenlee JJ. Raccoons accumulate PrP Sc after intracranial inoculation of the agents of chronic wasting disease or transmissible mink encephalopathy but not atypical scrapie. J Vet Diagn Invest 2019; 31:200-209. [PMID: 30694116 DOI: 10.1177/1040638718825290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the accumulation of misfolded prion protein (PrPSc) in the brain and other tissues. Animal prion diseases include scrapie in sheep, chronic wasting disease (CWD) in cervids, and transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) in ranch-raised mink. We investigated the susceptibility of raccoons to various prion disease agents and compared the clinicopathologic features of the resulting disease. Raccoon kits were inoculated intracranially with the agents of raccoon-passaged TME (TMERac), bovine-passaged TME (TMEBov), hamster-adapted drowsy (TMEDY) or hyper TME (TMEHY), CWD from white-tailed deer (CWDWtd) or elk (CWDElk), or atypical (Nor98) scrapie. Raccoons were euthanized when they developed clinical signs of prion disease or at study endpoint (<82 mo post-inoculation). Brain was examined for the presence of spongiform change, and disease-associated PrPSc was detected using an enzyme immunoassay, western blot, and immunohistochemistry. All raccoons inoculated with the agents of TMERac and TMEBov developed clinical disease at ~6.6 mo post-inoculation, with widespread PrPSc accumulation in central nervous system tissues. PrPSc was detected in the brain of 1 of 4 raccoons in each of the CWDWtd-, CWDElk-, and TMEHY-inoculated groups. None of the raccoons inoculated with TMEDY or atypical scrapie agents developed clinical disease or detectable PrPSc accumulation. Our results indicate that raccoons are highly susceptible to infection with raccoon- and bovine-passaged TME agents, whereas CWD isolates from white-tailed deer or elk and hamster-adapted TMEHY transmit poorly. Raccoons appear to be resistant to infection with hamster-adapted TMEDY and atypical scrapie agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Jo Moore
- National Animal Disease Center, Ames, IA (Moore, Greenlee).,Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA (Smith).,Kansas State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Manhattan, KS (Richt)
| | - Jodi D Smith
- National Animal Disease Center, Ames, IA (Moore, Greenlee).,Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA (Smith).,Kansas State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Manhattan, KS (Richt)
| | - Jürgen A Richt
- National Animal Disease Center, Ames, IA (Moore, Greenlee).,Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA (Smith).,Kansas State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Manhattan, KS (Richt)
| | - Justin J Greenlee
- National Animal Disease Center, Ames, IA (Moore, Greenlee).,Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Ames, IA (Smith).,Kansas State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Manhattan, KS (Richt)
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4
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Mathiason CK. Scrapie, CWD, and Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2017; 150:267-292. [PMID: 28838664 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2017.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), or prions, are neurodegenerative diseases that affect a variety of animal species, including humans. Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, sheep and goat scrapie, chronic wasting disease (CWD) of cervids, and transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) of mink are classified as TSEs. According to the "protein-only" hypothesis (Prusiner, 1982),1 prions are devoid of nucleic acids and consist of assemblies of misfolded host-encoded normal protein, the prion protein (PrPC). Prion propagation is thought to occur by a templating mechanism during which PrPC is recruited, converted to a disease-associated isoform (PrPD), and assembled onto the growing amyloid fibril. This fibular assembly is infectious, with ability to initiate disease processes similar to other pathogenic agents. Evidence indicates that scrapie, CWD, and TME disease processes follow this rule.
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Haley NJ, Richt JA. Evolution of Diagnostic Tests for Chronic Wasting Disease, a Naturally Occurring Prion Disease of Cervids. Pathogens 2017; 6:pathogens6030035. [PMID: 28783058 PMCID: PMC5617992 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens6030035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Revised: 07/29/2017] [Accepted: 08/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Since chronic wasting disease (CWD) was first identified nearly 50 years ago in a captive mule deer herd in the Rocky Mountains of the United States, it has slowly spread across North America through the natural and anthropogenic movement of cervids and their carcasses. As the endemic areas have expanded, so has the need for rapid, sensitive, and cost effective diagnostic tests—especially those which take advantage of samples collected antemortem. Over the past two decades, strategies have evolved from the recognition of microscopic spongiform pathology and associated immunohistochemical staining of the misfolded prion protein to enzyme-linked immunoassays capable of detecting the abnormal prion conformer in postmortem samples. In a history that parallels the diagnosis of more conventional infectious agents, both qualitative and real-time amplification assays have recently been developed to detect minute quantities of misfolded prions in a range of biological and environmental samples. With these more sensitive and semi-quantitative approaches has come a greater understanding of the pathogenesis and epidemiology of this disease in the native host. Because the molecular pathogenesis of prion protein misfolding is broadly analogous to the misfolding of other pathogenic proteins, including Aβ and α-synuclein, efforts are currently underway to apply these in vitro amplification techniques towards the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other proteinopathies. Chronic wasting disease—once a rare disease of Colorado mule deer—now represents one of the most prevalent prion diseases, and should serve as a model for the continued development and implementation of novel diagnostic strategies for protein misfolding disorders in the natural host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas J Haley
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA.
| | - Jürgen A Richt
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University (KSU), Manhattan, KS 66506, USA.
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6
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Nichols TA, Fischer JW, Spraker TR, Kong Q, VerCauteren KC. CWD prions remain infectious after passage through the digestive system of coyotes (Canis latrans). Prion 2016; 9:367-75. [PMID: 26636258 PMCID: PMC4964857 DOI: 10.1080/19336896.2015.1086061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a geographically expanding prion disease of wild and captive cervids in North America. Disease can be transmitted directly, animal to animal, or indirectly via the environment. CWD contamination can occur residually in the environment via soil, water, and forage following deposition of bodily fluids such as urine, saliva, and feces, or by the decomposition of carcasses. Recent work has indicated that plants may even take up prions into the stems and leaves. When a carcass or gut pile is present in the environment, a large number of avian and mammalian species visit and consume the carrion. Additionally, predators like coyotes, likely select for disease-compromised cervids. Natural cross-species CWD transmission has not been documented, however, passage of infectious prion material has been observed in the feces of crows. In this study we evaluated the ability of CWD-infected brain material to pass through the gastrointestinal tract of coyotes (Canis latrans) following oral ingestion, and be infectious in a cervidized transgenic mouse model. Results from this study indicate that coyotes can pass infectious prions via their feces for at least 3 days post ingestion, demonstrating that mammalian scavengers could contribute to the translocation and contamination of CWD in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy A Nichols
- a National Wildlife Research Center; United States Department of Agriculture ; Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; Wildlife Services ; Fort Collins , CO USA
| | - Justin W Fischer
- a National Wildlife Research Center; United States Department of Agriculture ; Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; Wildlife Services ; Fort Collins , CO USA
| | - Terry R Spraker
- b Colorado State University Diagnostic Laboratory; College of Veterinary Medicine; Colorado State University ; Fort Collins , CO USA.,c Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology ; College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; Colorado State University Prion Research Center ; Fort Collins , CO USA
| | - Qingzhong Kong
- d National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center; Institute of Pathology; Case Western Reserve University ; Cleveland , OH USA
| | - Kurt C VerCauteren
- a National Wildlife Research Center; United States Department of Agriculture ; Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; Wildlife Services ; Fort Collins , CO USA
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8
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Henderson DM, Davenport KA, Haley NJ, Denkers ND, Mathiason CK, Hoover EA. Quantitative assessment of prion infectivity in tissues and body fluids by real-time quaking-induced conversion. J Gen Virol 2014; 96:210-219. [PMID: 25304654 DOI: 10.1099/vir.0.069906-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions are amyloid-forming proteins that cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies through a process involving the templated conversion of the normal cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) to a pathogenic misfolded conformation. Templated conversion has been modelled in several in vitro assays, including serial protein misfolding amplification, amyloid seeding and real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC). As RT-QuIC measures formation of amyloid fibrils in real-time, it can be used to estimate the rate of seeded conversion. Here, we used samples from deer infected with chronic wasting disease (CWD) in RT-QuIC to show that serial dilution of prion seed was linearly related to the rate of amyloid formation over a range of 10(-3) to 10(-8) µg. We then used an amyloid formation rate standard curve derived from a bioassayed reference sample (CWD+ brain homogenate) to estimate the prion seed concentration and infectivity in tissues, body fluids and excreta. Using these methods, we estimated that urine and saliva from CWD-infected deer both contained 1-5 LD50 per 10 ml. Thus, over the 1-2 year course of an infection, a substantial environmental reservoir of CWD prion contamination accumulates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davin M Henderson
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Kristen A Davenport
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Nicholas J Haley
- Department of Diagnostic Medicine and Pathobiology, Kansas State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA
| | - Nathaniel D Denkers
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Candace K Mathiason
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Edward A Hoover
- Prion Research Center, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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Davanipour Z, Sobel E, Ziogas A, Smoak C, Bohr T, Doram K, Liwnicz B. Dietary Risk Factors for Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease: A Confirmatory Case-Control Study. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 4:2388-2417. [PMID: 24977122 PMCID: PMC4070593 DOI: 10.9734/bjmmr/2014/7209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Aims This study’s primary purpose was to determine whether earlier findings suggesting an association between sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD), a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy of humans and specific dietary components could be replicated. The a priori hypotheses were that consumption of (i) foods likely to contain organ tissue and (ii) raw/rare meat are associated with increased sCJD risk. Study Design Population-based case-control study. Place and Duration of Study Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA, USA; 4 years. Methodology An 11-state case-control study of pathologically confirmed, definite sCJD cases, matched controls, and a sample of control-surrogates was conducted. Ninety-six percent (106/110) of the case data was obtained in 1991-1993, prior to variant CJD publicity. Results Using control self-responses, consumption of hot dogs, sausage, pepperoni, kielbasa, “other” canned meat, poultry liver, any stomach/intestine, beef stomach/intestine, any organ tissue, and beef organ tissue was individually associated with increased sCJD risk; odds ratios (OR) ranged from 2.4 to 7.2 (0.003 <p<0.025). Rare/raw meat consumption was associated with sCJD (OR=2.0; p<0.05). Greater consumption of hot dogs, bologna, salami, sausage, pepperoni and kielbasa was associated with significantly higher risk. The OR for gizzard consumption was 7.6, p<0.04. Bologna, salami, any liver, beef liver and pork stomach/intestine were marginally associated with sCJD: ORs ranged from 1.7 to 3.7; 0.05 <p< 0.10. Brain consumption was not associated with an elevated risk. Analyses using control-surrogate data indicate that use of the control self-responses did not bias the results away from the null hypothesis. Conclusions The a priori hypotheses were supported. Consumption of various meat products may be one method of transmission of the infectious agent for sCJD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zoreh Davanipour
- Department of Neurology, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA, USA
| | - Eugene Sobel
- Department of Neurology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Argyrios Ziogas
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Carey Smoak
- Department of Neurology, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA, USA
| | - Thomas Bohr
- Department of Neurology, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA, USA
| | - Keith Doram
- Department of Internal Medicine, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA, USA
| | - Boleslaw Liwnicz
- Department of Pathology, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA, USA
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Nalls AV, McNulty E, Powers J, Seelig DM, Hoover C, Haley NJ, Hayes-Klug J, Anderson K, Stewart P, Goldmann W, Hoover EA, Mathiason CK. Mother to offspring transmission of chronic wasting disease in reeves' muntjac deer. PLoS One 2013; 8:e71844. [PMID: 23977159 PMCID: PMC3743758 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0071844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2013] [Accepted: 07/03/2013] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The horizontal transmission of prion diseases has been well characterized in bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), chronic wasting disease (CWD) of deer and elk and scrapie of sheep, and has been regarded as the primary mode of transmission. Few studies have monitored the possibility of vertical transmission occurring within an infected mother during pregnancy. To study the potential for and pathway of vertical transmission of CWD in the native cervid species, we used a small cervid model-the polyestrous breeding, indoor maintainable, Reeves' muntjac deer-and determined that the susceptibility and pathogenesis of CWD in these deer reproduce that in native mule and white-tailed deer. Moreover, we demonstrate here that CWD prions are transmitted from doe to fawn. Maternal CWD infection also appears to result in lower percentage of live birth offspring. In addition, evolving evidence from protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) assays on fetal tissues suggest that covert prion infection occurs in utero. Overall, our findings demonstrate that transmission of prions from mother to offspring can occur, and may be underestimated for all prion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy V. Nalls
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Erin McNulty
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Jenny Powers
- Biological Resource Management Division, National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Davis M. Seelig
- Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Clare Hoover
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Nicholas J. Haley
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Jeanette Hayes-Klug
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Kelly Anderson
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Paula Stewart
- The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Wilfred Goldmann
- The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush, Midlothian, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Edward A. Hoover
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Candace K. Mathiason
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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11
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Stewart P, Campbell L, Skogtvedt S, Griffin KA, Arnemo JM, Tryland M, Girling S, Miller MW, Tranulis MA, Goldmann W. Genetic predictions of prion disease susceptibility in carnivore species based on variability of the prion gene coding region. PLoS One 2012; 7:e50623. [PMID: 23236380 PMCID: PMC3517517 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0050623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2012] [Accepted: 10/23/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Mammalian species vary widely in their apparent susceptibility to prion diseases. For example, several felid species developed prion disease (feline spongiform encephalopathy or FSE) during the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) epidemic in the United Kingdom, whereas no canine BSE cases were detected. Whether either of these or other groups of carnivore species can contract other prion diseases (e.g. chronic wasting disease or CWD) remains an open question. Variation in the host-encoded prion protein (PrPC) largely explains observed disease susceptibility patterns within ruminant species, and may explain interspecies differences in susceptibility as well. We sequenced and compared the open reading frame of the PRNP gene encoding PrPC protein from 609 animal samples comprising 29 species from 22 genera of the Order Carnivora; amongst these samples were 15 FSE cases. Our analysis revealed that FSE cases did not encode an identifiable disease-associated PrP polymorphism. However, all canid PrPs contained aspartic acid or glutamic acid at codon 163 which we propose provides a genetic basis for observed susceptibility differences between canids and felids. Among other carnivores studied, wolverine (Gulo gulo) and pine marten (Martes martes) were the only non-canid species to also express PrP-Asp163, which may impact on their prion diseases susceptibility. Populations of black bear (Ursus americanus) and mountain lion (Puma concolor) from Colorado showed little genetic variation in the PrP protein and no variants likely to be highly resistant to prions in general, suggesting that strain differences between BSE and CWD prions also may contribute to the limited apparent host range of the latter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula Stewart
- Neurobiology Division, The Roslin Institute & R(D)SVS, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, United Kingdom
| | - Lauren Campbell
- Neurobiology Division, The Roslin Institute & R(D)SVS, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, United Kingdom
| | - Susan Skogtvedt
- Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, Dept. Basic Sciences & Aquatic Medicine, Oslo, Norway
| | - Karen A. Griffin
- Wildlife Research Center, Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Jon M. Arnemo
- Department of Forestry & Wildlife Management, Faculty of Applied Ecology and Agricultural Sciences, Hedmark University College, Campus Evenstad, Elverum, Norway & Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental Studies, Faculty of Forest Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Morten Tryland
- Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, Section of Arctic Veterinary Medicine, Tromsø, Norway
- GenØk - Centre for Biosafety, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Simon Girling
- Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, Edinburgh Zoo, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Michael W. Miller
- Wildlife Research Center, Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Michael A. Tranulis
- Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, Dept. Basic Sciences & Aquatic Medicine, Oslo, Norway
| | - Wilfred Goldmann
- Neurobiology Division, The Roslin Institute & R(D)SVS, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
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Saunders SE, Bartelt-Hunt SL, Bartz JC. Occurrence, transmission, and zoonotic potential of chronic wasting disease. Emerg Infect Dis 2012; 18:369-76. [PMID: 22377159 PMCID: PMC3309570 DOI: 10.3201/eid1803.110685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal, transmissible prion disease that affects captive and free-ranging deer, elk, and moose. Although the zoonotic potential of CWD is considered low, identification of multiple CWD strains and the potential for agent evolution upon serial passage hinders a definitive conclusion. Surveillance for CWD in free-ranging populations has documented a continual geographic spread of the disease throughout North America. CWD prions are shed from clinically and preclinically affected hosts, and CWD transmission is mediated at least in part by the environment, perhaps by soil. Much remains unknown, including the sites and mechanisms of prion uptake in the naive host. There are no therapeutics or effective eradication measures for CWD-endemic populations. Continued surveillance and research of CWD and its effects on cervid ecosystems is vital for controlling the long-term consequences of this emerging disease.
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Abstract
Although prion diseases, such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans and scrapie in sheep, have long been recognized, our understanding of their epidemiology and pathogenesis is still in its early stages. Progress is hampered by the lengthy incubation periods and the lack of effective ways of monitoring and characterizing these agents. Protease-resistant conformers of the prion protein (PrP), known as the "scrapie form" (PrP(Sc)), are used as disease markers, and for taxonomic purposes, in correlation with clinical, pathological, and genetic data. In humans, prion diseases can arise sporadically (sCJD) or genetically (gCJD and others), caused by mutations in the PrP-gene (PRNP), or as a foodborne infection, with the agent of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) causing variant CJD (vCJD). Person-to-person spread of human prion disease has only been known to occur following cannibalism (kuru disease in Papua New Guinea) or through medical or surgical treatment (iatrogenic CJD, iCJD). In contrast, scrapie in small ruminants and chronic wasting disease (CWD) in cervids behave as infectious diseases within these species. Recently, however, so-called atypical forms of prion diseases have been discovered in sheep (atypical/Nor98 scrapie) and in cattle, BSE-H and BSE-L. These maladies resemble sporadic or genetic human prion diseases and might be their animal equivalents. This hypothesis also raises the significant public health question of possible epidemiological links between these diseases and their counterparts in humans.
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Gilch S, Chitoor N, Taguchi Y, Stuart M, Jewell JE, Schätzl HM. Chronic wasting disease. Top Curr Chem (Cham) 2011; 305:51-77. [PMID: 21598099 DOI: 10.1007/128_2011_159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease of free-ranging and farmed ungulates (deer, elk, and moose) in North America and South Korea. First described by the late E.S. Williams and colleagues in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming in the 1970s, CWD has increased tremendously both in numerical and geographical distribution, reaching prevalence rates as high as 50% in free-ranging and >90% in captive deer herds in certain areas of USA and Canada. CWD is certainly the most contagious prion infection, with significant horizontal transmission of infectious prions by, e.g., urine, feces, and saliva. Dissemination and persistence of infectivity in the environment combined with the appearance in wild-living and migrating animals make CWD presently uncontrollable, and pose extreme challenges to wild-life disease management. Whereas CWD is extremely transmissible among cervids, its trans-species transmission seems to be restricted, although the possible involvement of rodent and carnivore species in environmental transmission has not been fully evaluated. Whether or not CWD has zoonotic potential as had Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) has yet to be answered. Of note, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) was only detected because clinical presentation and age of patients were significantly different from classical CJD. Along with further understanding of the molecular biology and pathology of CWD, its transmissibility and species restrictions and development of methods for preclinical diagnosis and intervention will be crucial for effective containment of this highly contagious prion disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabine Gilch
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82070, USA
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Sandberg MK, Al-Doujaily H, Sigurdson CJ, Glatzel M, O'Malley C, Powell C, Asante EA, Linehan JM, Brandner S, Wadsworth JDF, Collinge J. Chronic wasting disease prions are not transmissible to transgenic mice overexpressing human prion protein. J Gen Virol 2010; 91:2651-7. [PMID: 20610667 PMCID: PMC3052602 DOI: 10.1099/vir.0.024380-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease that affects free-ranging and captive cervids, including mule deer, white-tailed deer, Rocky Mountain elk and moose. CWD-infected cervids have been reported in 14 USA states, two Canadian provinces and in South Korea. The possibility of a zoonotic transmission of CWD prions via diet is of particular concern in North America where hunting of cervids is a popular sport. To investigate the potential public health risks posed by CWD prions, we have investigated whether intracerebral inoculation of brain and spinal cord from CWD-infected mule deer transmits prion infection to transgenic mice overexpressing human prion protein with methionine or valine at polymorphic residue 129. These transgenic mice have been utilized in extensive transmission studies of human and animal prion disease and are susceptible to BSE and vCJD prions, allowing comparison with CWD. Here, we show that these mice proved entirely resistant to infection with mule deer CWD prions arguing that the transmission barrier associated with this prion strain/host combination is greater than that observed with classical BSE prions. However, it is possible that CWD may be caused by multiple prion strains. Further studies will be required to evaluate the transmission properties of distinct cervid prion strains as they are characterized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malin K Sandberg
- MRC Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Institute of Neurology, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
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