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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » National Animal Disease Center » Virus and Prion Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #400777
Research Project: Elucidating the Pathobiology and Transmission of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies

Location: Virus and Prion Research

Title: The chronic wasting disease agent from white-tailed deer is highly infectious to humanized mice after passage through raccoons

Author
item Cassmann, Eric
item QI, XU - Case Western Reserve University (CWRU)
item KONG, QINGZHONG - Case Western Reserve University (CWRU)
item Greenlee, Justin

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/15/2023
Publication Date: 5/30/2023
Citation: Cassmann, E.D., Qi, X., Kong, Q., Greenlee, J.J. 2023. The chronic wasting disease agent from white-tailed deer is highly infectious to humanized mice after passage through raccoons (abstract). Meeting Abstract. 4th International Chronic Wasting Disease Symposium, May 30-June 3, 2023, Denver, Colorado.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the zoonotic potential of the raccoon passaged chronic wasting disease (CWD) agent in humanized transgenic mice in comparison with the North American CWD agent from the original white-tailed deer (WTD) host. Pooled brain (GG96) from CWD positive deer was used to intracranially inoculate two WTD and one raccoon. Brain homogenates (10% w/v) from the raccoon and the WTD were used to intracranially inoculate transgenic mice (Tg40h) expressing the methionine 109 human prion protein. Brains and spleens were collected from mice at experimental endpoints of clinical disease or approximately 700 days post-inoculation. Tissues were divided and homogenized or fixed in 10% buffered neutral formalin. Immunohistochemistry, enzyme immunoassay, and western blot were used to detect misfolded prion protein (PrPSc) in tissue. Tg40h mice inoculated with the raccoon passaged CWD agent from WTD exhibited a 100% (12/12) attack rate with an average incubation period of 605 days. PrPSc was detected in brain tissue by enzyme immunoassay with an average optical density of 3.6/4.0 for positive brains. PrPSc also was detected in brain tissue by western blot and immunohistochemistry. No PrPSc was detected in the spleens of mice inoculated with the raccoon passaged CWD agent. Humanized mice inoculated with the CWD agent from WTD did not have detectable PrPSc using conventional immunoassay techniques. These results demonstrated that the host range of the CWD agent from WTD was expanded in our experimental model after one passage through raccoons.