Excretion of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Infectivity in Urine

Autor: Luisa Gregori, Gabor G. Kovacs, Irina Alexeeva, Herbert Budka, Robert G. Rohwer
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2008
Předmět:
Zdroj: Emerging Infectious Diseases, Vol 14, Iss 9, Pp 1406-1412 (2008)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1080-6040
1080-6059
DOI: 10.3201/eid1409.080259
Popis: The route of transmission of most naturally acquired transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) infections remains speculative. To investigate urine as a potential source of TSE exposure, we used a sensitive method for detection and quantitation of TSE infectivity. Pooled urine collected from 22 hamsters showing clinical signs of 263K scrapie contained 3.8 ± 0.9 infectious doses/mL of infectivity. Titration of homogenates of kidneys and urinary bladders from the same animals gave concentrations 20,000-fold greater. Histologic and immunohistochemical examination of these same tissues showed no indications of inflammatory or other pathologic changes except for occasional deposits of disease-associated prion protein in kidneys. Although the source of TSE infectivity in urine remains unresolved, these results establish that TSE infectivity is excreted in urine and may thereby play a role in the horizontal transmission of natural TSEs. The results also indicate potential risk for TSE transmission from human urine–derived hormones and other medicines.
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