MAFWA

Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Published 5:10 p.m. CT May 2, 2018

Scientists detected the prion that causes chronic wasting disease in soil and water at mineral lick sites in south-central Wisconsin, according to work published Wednesday  by University of Wisconsin researchers.

It’s the first such finding in environmental samples taken from spots where deer gather.

Although the results were not surprising in an area known to harbor CWD, they document a breakthrough in analytical methodology to detect and monitor the presence of the prion and have significant disease management implications for wildlife and agriculture officials.

“Detection of prions in environmental reservoirs represents an important first step in understanding environmental transmission of CWD as well as the potential for cross-species transmission,” said Joel Pedersen, lead author of the study. Continue reading →

February 12, 2016

While there are many unknowns about Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), several studies have been done that may shed some light on which control efforts seem to be most effective. CWD was found in Illinois and Wisconsin at approximately the same time. In 2002, there was a scramble to try to control an outbreak of the disease in both states. Both states implemented a ban on baiting and feeding deer located in areas where the disease had been detected. The translocation of deer was also banned. Sharpshooting was seen as a viable control measure in both states as well. However, in 2007, largely due to negative feedback from the public, sharpshooting was eliminated as a control measure in the state of Wisconsin. In Illinois, however, the specific, targeted sharpshooting continued. In a study called “The importance of localized culling in stabilizing chronic wasting disease prevalence in white tailed deer,” Mary Beth Manjerovic, Michelle L. Green, Nohra Matews-Pinilla, and Jan Novakofski looked into the differences in CWD prevalence in deer herds in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois from 2002 to 2012. The researchers were from the Illinois Natural History Survey – University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the Department of Animal Science – University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. While culling of game species by government agencies is one means of disease control, it can be met with some resistance from the public, they said. That was the case in Wisconsin. Beginning in 2007, the state decided to use only traditional public hunting as a means of control, while Illinois continued using sharpshooters to target specific areas and parts of their herd. Continue reading →