Mother to Offspring Transmission of Chronic Wasting Disease in Reeves’ Muntjac Deer

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0071844
• Publication Date: 2013-08-15T02:26:20Z
• Authors: Amy V. Nalls; Erin McNulty; Jenny Powers; Davis M. Seelig; Clare Hoover; Nicholas J. Haley; Jeanette Hayes-Klug; Kelly Anderson; Paula Stewart; Wilfred Goldmann; Edward A. Hoover; Candace K. Mathiason
• Keywords: Chronic wasting disease; Animal sexual behaviour

The horizontal transmission of prion diseases has been well characterized in bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), chronic wasting disease (CWD) deer and elk scrapie sheep, regarded as the primary mode transmission. Few studies have monitored possibility vertical occurring within an infected mother during pregnancy. To study potential for pathway CWD native cervid species, we used a small model–the polyestrous breeding, indoor maintainable, Reeves' muntjac deer–and determined that susceptibility pathogenesis these reproduce mule white-tailed deer. Moreover, demonstrate here prions are transmitted from doe to fawn. Maternal infection also appears result lower percentage live birth offspring. In addition, evolving evidence protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) assays on fetal tissues suggest covert occurs utero. Overall, our findings offspring can occur, may be underestimated all diseases.