The Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) have informed Defra, the Devolved Administrations and the Food Standards Agency of a type of scrapie not previously seen in the UK.
The VLA and other European laboratories with expertise in scrapie-like diseases have now applied several rapid diagnostic methods to tissue samples from a sheep with suspected scrapie. Some of the methods have indicated that the case does not appear to resemble previously recognised cases of scrapie and, although there were differences, it had some characteristics similar to experimental BSE in sheep and also to an experimental strain of sheep scrapie. More importantly, though, microscopic analysis of brain material showed that the case neither resembled previously recognised types of scrapie or experimental BSE in sheep.
A meeting of the scientific experts who performed these analyses, held on the 30th March, concluded that this case could not be considered to be BSE in sheep, although it does not behave like known types of scrapie either. Further investigation will be needed before more can be said about how this unusual result should be described.
Defra's Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Howard Dalton, said "The UK, and especially the VLA, have played an important part in improving the diagnostic methods available for identifying TSEs in sheep. As we continue to assess more samples with these improved methods it is likely that we will continue to find samples, such as this, which fall outside our current knowledge of the disease.
Defra, as it does with all research, will continue to consult scientific experts to ensure that we are investigating these cases using the best available techniques and methods."
The National Scrapie Plan remains unaffected by this new result and SEAC will be consulted in the near future.