The resurgence of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, or "mad cow disease," in the European Union raised eyebrows of economists and animal science professionals, alike. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has posted several online documents on BSE. This resource, also from USDA, is a FactSheet on BSE.

Mad Cows: The Why Files, provided by the University of Wisconsin, provides brief information on Mad Cow disease in layperson's language with hypertext links. Although prion research has been going on for over 25 years, the scientific and medical communities have only recently acknowledged the existence of prions and there remains serious debate over their role in a variety of neurological...

"Prion Diseases" is an article written by Dr. Prusiner in Science. Although prion research has been going on for over 25 years, the scientific and medical communities have only recently acknowledged the existence of prions and there remains serious debate over their role in a variety of neurological diseases. The name "prion" is derived from "proteinaceous infectious particles," and was coined by...

Released on October 26, this long-awaited report from the UK government on BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) and CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease) is based on oral and written evidence from over 600 witnesses including scientists, farmers, private industry, senior civil servants, local authorities, former ministers and families of victims of variant CJD. Among its most important findings are...

The discovery of a cow carrying BSE in the United States has reenergized the public's interest in such topics. This site, an offshoot of the WHO site devoted to diseases, offers a good overview of the disease and its similar nature to that of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease -- the form of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that can affect humans. Also of note at this site is a exceptionally...