2008년 말 호주에서 방사선를 쬐여 소독처리한 pet food(고양이 사료)를 먹고 90마리 정도에서 신경증상이 나타났으며, 그 중 30마리가 사망한 적이 있습니다. 고양이 환축들은 특정 영양소 결핍이나 독성 물질의 축적이 전혀 나타나지 않았으며, 세균이나 바이러스에 감염되지도 않은 것으로 나타났다고 합니다.
문제의 사료(Orijen)는 캐나다에서 수입한 고급사료였는데, Champion Petfoods라고 불리는 캐나다 회사는 대규모 리콜을 실시했다고 합니다.
호주 농림부장관 Tony Burke는 즉각적으로 방사선 조사 처리를 금지하였다고 합니다.
방사선 조사 방식의 강아지 사료를 먹은 개에서는 이와 같은 증상이 나타나지 않았다고 하는데, 아직까지 왜 이러한 사태가 발생했는지에 대한 명확한 과학적 규명은 이루어지지 않은 것 같습니다.
호주의 방사선조사 고양이 사료 사건은 방사선 조사 식품의 안전성 논란과 관련하여 우리에게 많은 시사점을 준다고 생각합니다.
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Extensive remyelination of the CNS leads to functional recovery
출처 : http://www.pnas.org/content/106/16/6832.abstract?sid=932245d0-bb44-49af-b441-5990eff61b88
+ Author Affiliations
Departments of aMedical Sciences and
dPathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin, 2015 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706;
bWisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, 445 Easterday Lane, Madison, WI 53706; and
cHarlan Laboratories, P.O. Box 44220, Madison, WI 53744
Edited by Hector F. DeLuca, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, and approved February 18, 2009 (received for review December 9, 2008)
Abstract
Remyelination of the CNS in multiple sclerosis is thought to be important to restore conduction and protect axons against degeneration. Yet the role that remyelination plays in clinical recovery of function remains unproven. Here, we show that cats fed an irradiated diet during gestation developed a severe neurologic disease resulting from extensive myelin vacuolation and subsequent demyelination. Despite the severe myelin degeneration, axons remained essentially intact. There was a prompt endogenous response by cells of the oligodendrocyte lineage to the demyelination, with remyelination occurring simultaneously. Cats that were returned to a normal diet recovered slowly so that by 3–4 months they were neurologically normal. Histological examination of the CNS at this point showed extensive remyelination that was especially notable in the optic nerve where almost the entire nerve was remyelinated. Biochemical analysis of the diet and tissues from affected cats showed no dietary deficiencies or toxic accumulations. Thus, although the etiology of this remarkable disease remains unknown, it shows unequivocally that where axons are preserved remyelination is the default pathway in the CNS in nonimmune-mediated demyelinating disease. Most importantly, it confirms the clinical relevance of remyelination and its ability to restore function.
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Petfood recall prompted by cat deaths
출처 : Foodmag 24 November 2008
http://www.foodmag.com.au/Article/Petfood-recall-prompted-by-cat-deaths/431933.aspx
A gourmet imported petfood has been withdrawn from sale after an outbreak of chronic illness and death among Sydney cats.
Orijen cat food is being linked to a number of cat deaths.
Vets have put down at least five cats over the past week and treated more than a dozen others suffering from paralysis.
Dr Georgina Child said the only factor that linked all the cats was a specialist pet food called Orijen, which is imported through a Canadian company, Champion Petfoods.
“There is a highly suspicious link because this is an uncommon expensive food in this country at the moment, and not sold in supermarkets,” Dr Child said.
“But all tests that have been done so far haven’t given us an answer.”
First symptoms included wobbliness or weakness in the animal’s hind legs, which could then progress to the front limbs.
The condition did not appear to be infectious, Dr Child said, nor typical of a nutritional deficiency.
The marketing manager of Champion Petfoods, Peter Muhlenfeld, confirmed the cat deaths had been traced back to Orijen’s dry cat food, and the problem appeared to be restricted to Australia.
He said samples sent back by the Australian distributor had a “strange odour”.
The company is investigating whether irradiation upon entry into Australia was the source of the contamination.
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Cat-food irradiation banned as pet theory proved
KELLY BURKE CONSUMER AFFAIRS REPORTER
May 30, 2009http://www.smh.com.au/national/catfood-irradiation-banned-as-pet-theory-proved-20090529-bq8h.html
A SERIES of mysterious cat deaths was caused by the government-mandated practice of irradiating imported pet food.
The Agriculture Minister, Tony Burke, has ordered the controversial sterilisation process, which has been in place for more than a decade, to cease immediately, following compelling overseas evidence that some cats can suffer fatal neurological damage after eating irradiated dry food.
Dogs do not appear to be affected by similarly treated food.
About 90 cats fell ill last year and 30 died before a Sydney vet, Georgina Child, made the link in November between the mystery illness and a brand of Canadian gourmet pet food called Orijen.
The manufacturer, Champion Petfoods, blamed the contaminated food on Australian quarantine regulations, which demand that pet food not cooked over a specified temperature undergo irradiation of 50 kiloGrays upon arrival in the country. Of the 60 countries Champion Petfoods exports to, only Australia makes irradiation compulsory.
The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service and the company that carries out the process, Steritech, insisted at the time the irradiation process was harmless. A limited range of imported human foods, including dried herbs and some tropical fruits, are also irradiated before landing on store shelves, but at much lower levels than that mandated for pet food.
Mr Burke said the inspection service decided to act in response to international reports his department received only late last week. Work was being done in state and federal governments to see how safety standards for pet food could be improved.
“People expect that any treatments conducted on imported pet food will result in food that is still safe for pets,” he said.
Dr Child said the move was welcome but did not go far enough. The irradiation ban is not being extended to imported dog food, leaving cats with access to such food still at risk.
“We still don’t know why this problem is unique to cats, and we’re still not certain why some brands of pet food are affected by irradiation and not others,” she said. “What this does show is that all food that has been irradiated needs to be labelled, which isn’t the case at the moment.”
Sarah Oddy, of Dundas, who lost two cats after they were fed the Orijen pet food, said the ban was great news.
Champion Petfoods has set up a fund to disperse compensation for veterinary bills for all affected Australian cat owners.
