Surveillance for Prion Disease in Cervids, Germany

Abstract

An active survey on transmissible spongiform encephalopathies was performed from 2002 to 2005 on 4,255 roe deer, 1,445 red deer, and 1,604 fallow deer in Germany. All cervids tested negative. This survey has been the largest in European wildlife and provides no evidence of prion diseases in free-living German cervids.

Keywords

• Transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE)
• prion disease
• chronic wasting disease (CWD)
• Europe
• Germany
• risk analysis