October 22, 2012

Today's Wildlife Disease News Stories

TOP STORIES

Crows Don't Digest Prions, May Transport Them to Other Locations

Crows fed on prion-infected brains from mice can transmit these infectious agents in their feces and may play a role in the geographic spread of diseases caused by prions, such as chronic wasting disease or scrapie.

...Kurt VerCauteren from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and other colleagues, shows that prions can pass through crows' digestive systems without being destroyed, and may be excreted intact after ingestion by the birds. According to the authors, their results demonstrate a potential role for the common crow in the spread of infectious diseases caused by prions.

Science Daily
17 Oct 2012


Cited Journal Article
VerCauteren KC, et al. Prion Remains Infectious after Passage through Digestive System of American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). PLoS ONE, 2012; 7 (10): e45774.  DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0045774


Avian botulism killing hundreds of loons

Dead birds are washing up along the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, among them, 300 loons.

Biologists believe the birds are being killed by botulism. The disease has been blamed in the deaths of many shorebirds in the Great Lakes region, but officials say it is rare to see this many loons affected.

Up North Live.com
18 Oct 2012
L Amstutz
Location: Sleeping Bear Dunes, - Map It

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