Influence of the geographic distribution of prion protein gene sequence variation on patterns of chronic wasting disease spread in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus).

ABSTRACT: Managing and controlling the spread of diseases in wild animal populations is challenging, especially for social and mobile species. Effective management benefits from information about disease susceptibility, allowing limited resources to be focused on areas or populations with a higher risk of infection. Chronic wasting disease (CWD), a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that affects cervids, was detected in Colorado in the late 1960s. CWD was detected in Illinois and Wisconsin in 2002 and has since spread through many counties. Specific nucleotide variations in the prion protein gene (PRNP) sequence have been associated with reduced susceptibility to CWD in white-tailed deer. Though genetic resistance is incomplete, the frequency of deer possessing these mutations in a population i

SUBMITTER: Brandt AL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6277178 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature