PREVIEW

Scientists Warn 'Zombie Deer Disease' Could Jump to Humans. The first case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) has been recorded in a mule deer buck in Yellowstone national park. 'The Guardian' reports that CWD has silently been spreading across North America for years. The fatal disease, which has no known treatments or vaccines, is caused by abnormal, transmissible pathogenic agents called prions. Prions alter its host's brain and nervous system, leaving the animal lethargic, emaciated and stumbling. Victims of CWD also reportedly have a telltale "blank stare," which has led some to call it the "zombie deer disease". It has been found in members of the cervid family, which includes deer, elk, moose, caribou and reindeer. Dr Thomas Roffe, a vet and former chief of animal health for the Fish & Wildlife Service, warns that the discovery of CWD in Yellowstone should be a public wake-up call. "This case puts CWD on the radar of widespread attention in ways it wasn’t before – and that’s, ironically, a good thing. It’s a disease that has huge ecological implications.", Dr Thomas Roffe, a vet and former chief of animal health for the Fish & Wildlife Service, via 'The Guardian'. Dr Michael Osterholm, an epidemiologist, called CWD a “slow-moving disaster”. Dr Raina Plowright, a disease ecologist at Cornell University, warns that CWD is just one of many dangerous zoonotic pathogens, capable of moving across species barriers between humans, livestock and wildlife globally. THIS VIDEO MUST NOT BE EDITED FOR LENGTH TO COMBINE WITH OTHER CONTENT