Casalone C, Caramelli M, Crescio M I, Spencer Y I, Simmons M M
CEA, Istituto Zooprofilattico del Piemonte, Via Bologna 148, 10154, Turin, Italy.
Acta Neuropathol. 2006 May;111(5):444-9. doi: 10.1007/s00401-005-0012-1. Epub 2006 Apr 14.
The continuous monitoring of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) cases is an integral component of European research and surveillance programmes, to ensure that any changes in the presentation of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) in cattle can be detected and defined. Monitoring is generally limited to the brainstem at the level of the obex, for reasons of practicality, safety and cost. Demonstration of disease-specific prion protein (PrP(d)) by immunohistochemistry is currently the most widely used confirmatory tool for both active and passive surveillance. This study assessed PrP(d) immunostaining in the brainstems (obex) of cattle with BSE in the UK and Italy. Immunoreactivity 'profiles' were created for each case based on the nature of the immunostaining, its relative intensity and precise neuroanatomical location. This study compares the obex immunostaining patterns of Italian cases (only active surveillance) and two UK groups (both active and passive surveillance). The neuroanatomical distribution and relative intensity of PrP(d) was highly reproducible in all cases. The overall staining intensity varied widely but was generally stronger in the active than in the passive surveillance populations. The conclusion to be drawn from this comparative study is that the pattern of immunopathology in these routine screening samples for BSE diagnosis and surveillance is the same in the UK and Italy, whether or not the animal was displaying typical, or indeed any, clinical signs at the time of sampling. This indicates that the current confirmatory diagnostic strategy remains appropriate for active surveillance applications.
持续监测牛海绵状脑病（BSE）病例是欧洲研究和监测计划的一个重要组成部分，以确保能够检测并确定牛传染性海绵状脑病（TSE）表现形式的任何变化。出于实用性、安全性和成本方面的考虑，监测通常仅限于延髓水平的脑干。目前，通过免疫组织化学检测疾病特异性朊病毒蛋白（PrP(d)）是主动监测和被动监测中使用最广泛的确证工具。本研究评估了英国和意大利患BSE牛的脑干（延髓）中的PrP(d)免疫染色情况。根据免疫染色的性质、相对强度和精确的神经解剖位置，为每个病例创建了免疫反应性“图谱”。本研究比较了意大利病例（仅主动监测）和两个英国组（主动监测和被动监测）的延髓免疫染色模式。在所有病例中PrP(d)的神经解剖分布和相对强度具有高度可重复性。总体染色强度差异很大，但在主动监测群体中通常比被动监测群体更强。从这项比较研究中得出的结论是，在英国和意大利，这些用于BSE诊断和监测的常规筛查样本中的免疫病理学模式是相同的，无论动物在采样时是否表现出典型的或任何临床症状。这表明当前的确证性诊断策略仍然适用于主动监测应用。
