Study finds humans are not susceptible to deadly chronic wasting disease

A recent study has found that a substantial species barrier is preventing the spread of deadly chronic wasting disease (CWD) from deer, elk, and moose to humans. CWD, also known as zombie deer disease, is a highly transmissible prion disease that primarily affects the central nervous system.

Prion diseases are degenerative diseases that involve abnormal protein folding, clumping together, and eventually destroying the brain. While CWD has never been found in humans, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) is the most common form of prion disease in humans.

In a study conducted by scientists from the National Institutes of Health in the US, a human cerebral organoid model was used to assess the risk of CWD transmission to humans. The researchers infected the organoids with human CJD prions as a positive control and exposed them to high concentrations of CWD prions from deer and elk as a negative control.

Surprisingly, none of the organoids became infected with CWD during the six months of observation. The results, published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases, suggest that there is a substantial barrier preventing the transmission of CWD to humans.

The researchers noted that while the emergence of new strains with lower barriers to infection is possible, the current data indicate that humans are extremely unlikely to contract a prion disease from eating CWD-infected meat.

This study provides valuable insights into the transmission of CWD and offers reassurance that the risk to humans is minimal. Further research is needed to fully understand the potential risks associated with prion diseases and their transmission to humans.