Fear of mad cow disease, a lethal illness transmitted from infected
beef to humans, has spread from Europe to the United States and
around the world. Originally published to much acclaim in France,
this scientific thriller, available in English for the first time
and updated with a new chapter on developments in 2001, tells of
the hunt for the cause of an enigmatic class of fatal brain
infections, of which mad cow disease is the latest incarnation. In
gripping, nontechnical prose, Maxime Schwartz details the deadly
manifestations of these diseases throughout history, describes the
major players and events that led to discoveries about their true
nature, and outlines our current state of knowledge. The book
concludes by addressing the question we all want answered: should
we be afraid? The story begins in the eighteenth century with the
identification of a mysterious illness called scrapie that was
killing British sheep. It was not until the 1960s that scientists
understood that several animal and human diseases, including
scrapie, were identical, and together identified them as
transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE). The various guises
assumed throughout history by TSE include an illness called kuru in
a cannibalistic tribe in Papua New Guinea, an infectious disease
that killed a group of children who had been treated for growth
hormone deficiencies, and mad cow disease. Revealing the
fascinating process of scientific discovery that led to our
knowledge of TSE, Schwartz relates pivotal events in the history of
biology, including the Pasteurian revolution, the birth of
genetics, the emergence of molecular biology, and the latest
developments in biotechnology. He also explains the Nobel
Prize-winning prion hypothesis, which has rewritten the rules of
biological heredity and is a key link between the distinctive
diseases of TSE. Up-to-date, informative, and thoroughly
captivating, How the Cows Turned Mad tells the story of a disease
that continues to elude on many levels. Yet science has come far in
understanding its origins, incubation, and transmission. This
authoritative book is a stunning case history that illuminates the
remarkable progression of science.
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