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Chronic Wasting Disease in Deer found in 36 states
Chronic Wasting Disease in Deer found in 36 states in 2025
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a prion-related disease that impacts deer, elk, reindeer, sika deer, and moose. Instances of CWD have been identified in Canada, the United States, Norway, and South Korea. CWD proteins, or prions, are believed to spread among deer and elk through body fluids like feces, saliva, blood, or urine. Once introduced into an area, CWD can quickly infect deer and elk populations and persist in the environment, posing a risk to other animals even after the infected animal has died. Experimental studies have shown that CWD can infect certain animals, including squirrel monkeys and laboratory mice with human genes. But there has been no report of human infection.
What are the indications of CWD? Deer affected by CWD may appear healthy for 16 months or more before displaying signs of the disease. Throughout this period, they can transmit CWD to other animals and the environment. Signs of a CWD infection include:
* Listlessness or a diminished interest in their surroundings.
* Lack of coordination.
* Frequent lowering of the head.
* Blank stare.
* Walking in predetermined patterns.
* Drooling and grinding of teeth.
* Increased water consumption and frequent urination.
* Reduced body weight.
So how can the infected prions be eradicated? Unfortunately, infected prions exhibit exceptional resilience to high temperatures, with the incineration of prion-contaminated material being widely recognized as the most effective disposal method. While incineration at 1,000°C proves successful in eliminating prion infectivity, residual infectivity can persist even after treatment at 600°C!! Even when subjected to freezing for extended periods, prions maintain their capacity to induce CWD.
However, a recent study by scientists at the National Institutes of Health highlights a promising decontamination method. It reveals that stainless steel wires coated with chronic wasting disease (CWD) prions can be effectively cleansed by soaking them in a 40% household bleach solution for just 5 minutes. While these approaches may prove effective for cleaning small contaminated areas or disposal of dead animals, it is evident that it would be impractical for addressing contamination in the wild.
Sources:
https://www.cdc.gov/prions/cwd/transmission.html
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2658766/....
https://www.vet.upenn.edu/.../fac.../chronic-wasting-disease