Three-quarters of deer in some parts of the United States are infected with a 100 percent deadly “zombie deer virus,” experts have warned.
This deadly neurological disease, also known as chronic wasting disease, is currently attacking North American cervids, including deer, elk, and moose.
The brain virus leaves animals confused, drooling and unafraid of humans. In areas where the disease is endemic, the prevalence is typically estimated at up to 25 percent.
However, Colorado experts have warned that up to three-quarters of deer are infected in certain parts of the state.
Visitors to national parks are urged to remain vigilant and stay away from any animals that appear to be infected, especially after the discovery of a sick deer in Yellowstone late last year.
Three-quarters of deer in some parts of the US are infected with a 100 per cent deadly ‘zombie deer virus’, experts have warned.
At least 32 states in the United States and parts of Canada have received reports of a virus called “zombie deer disease” that could potentially be transmitted to humans.
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion-borne disease, similar to “mad cow,” that can cause weight loss, loss of coordination, and other eventually fatal neurological symptoms in deer. Above, a deer killed by CWD identified by Mississippi wildlife officials
Colorado Parks and Wildlife PIO Joey Livingston told Western Slope Now that scientists have identified chronic wasting diseases in 40 of 54 of our deer herds and 17 of 42 elk herds.
Once an animal contracts this disease, there is no cure or treatment. It is 100% fatal. They become lethargic, become lonely and uninterested in other deer. “His brain is deteriorating and so it will be,” he told the outlet.
The disease is transmitted through shedding, feces and feeding sites and tends to be more common in male deer that have greater interactions with other deer, especially during mating season.
There have not yet been cases of transmission to humans, however scientists have suggested it is a possibility.
The disease is caused by misfolded proteins, when proteins do not fold into the correct shape, called prions.
After infection, prions travel throughout the central nervous system and leave prion deposits in brain tissues and organs.
Recent studies have shown that prions have the ability to infect and multiply in human cells under laboratory conditions, which has raised the possibility of spillover.
It is believed that humans can contract the disease by eating infected venison or by contact with contaminated soil and water.
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion-borne disease, similar to “mad cow,” that can cause weight loss, loss of coordination, and other eventually fatal neurological symptoms in deer. Above, a deer killed by CWD identified by Mississippi wildlife officials
The disease is transmitted through shedding, feces and places where animals eat.
It can take up to two years for an infected animal to develop symptoms.
It can take up to two years before symptoms appear in cervids.
As of last month, at least 32 U.S. states and parts of Canada have received reports of the virus.
Dr Cory Anderson told The Guardian: “The BSE (mad cow) outbreak in Britain provided an example of how, overnight, things can become chaotic when a contagion event occurs, e.g. from livestock to people”.
BSE is also a prion-borne disease, like chronic wasting disease.
“We’re talking about the possibility of something similar happening,” said Anderson, program co-director of the Center for Infectious Diseases Research and Policy.
He added: “No one is saying this is definitely going to happen, but it’s important that people are prepared.”
According to Anderson, whose study focused on the transmission routes of CWD, the disease is “invariably fatal, incurable and highly contagious.”
“The concern is because we do not have an easy and effective way to eradicate it, neither from the animals it infects nor from the environment it contaminates.”
CWD was first identified in captive deer at a Colorado research center in the late 1960s, and in wild deer in 1981.
By the 1990s, it had been reported in surrounding areas of northern Colorado and southern Wyoming.
While prevalence is generally low, it is much higher among captive herds. A rate of 79 percent (nearly 4 in 5) has been reported in at least one captive herd.