Introduction to the Camel Prion Disease Identified Recently
Camel prion disease is an infectious spongiform encephalopathy identified in single-hump camels in North Africa in recent years. All infected camels are over 8 years old,with a course of 3-8 months,and the characteristics of abnormal behaviors,ataxia,anaphylaxis,occasional falls and difficulty in standing;spongy vacuolar lesions were observed in the specific area of brain,and prion could be detected by immunohistochemistry and western blotting,which has not been classified as an emerging disease by World Organization for Animal Health(WOAH). In the paper,as relevant information was very limited,the origin,clinical symptoms,pathological changes,pathogenic characteristics,opinions proposed by WOAH and recommendations on prevention and control of the disease were introduced,with a view to alerting the authorities for animal disease prevention and control and relevant practitioners in China to the disease.