Ridley R M, Baker H F
Department of Experimental Psychology, Cambridge University.
BMJ. 1995 Oct 21;311(7012):1071-5; discussion 1075-6. doi: 10.1136/bmj.311.7012.1071.
It has long been accepted that the pattern of occurrence of scrapie--the form of spongiform encephalopathy associated with sheep--is determined mainly by maternal transmission, and this view has had a profound influence on policy decisions in the control of bovine spongiform encephalopathy and on public concern over the risk to human health form this disease. The occurrence of maternal transmission is, however, not predicted by modern knowledge of the aetiology of spongiform encephalopathy, and even though claims of maternal transmission have been reiterated frequently in the literature, re-examination of the source data reveals that these data are extremely scanty, unreplicated, and probably subject to ascertainment bias. The probability of maternal transmission of spongiform encephalopathy in any species should be viewed with the greatest scepticism.
长期以来，人们一直认为羊瘙痒症（与绵羊相关的海绵状脑病形式）的发生模式主要由母源性传播决定，这一观点对牛海绵状脑病控制方面的政策决策以及公众对该疾病对人类健康风险的担忧产生了深远影响。然而，现代关于海绵状脑病病因的知识并不能预测母源性传播的发生，尽管文献中经常重申母源性传播的说法，但对原始数据的重新审查发现，这些数据极其匮乏、未经重复验证，而且可能存在确认偏倚。对于任何物种中海绵状脑病母源性传播的可能性，都应持最大程度的怀疑态度。
