Blood Test for Mad Cow Disease

A sensitive blood test for protein-folding diseases such as spongiform bovine encephalopathy (SBE), also known as mad cow disease, could provide an earlier diagnosis.

The test uses small, synthetic peptides that mimic protein folding. The peptides detect the build-up of damaging proteins in blood before they accumulate in the brain. This accumulation is correlated to brain damage, disease symptoms, and eventual death.

The test was developed by Dr. Cindy Orser, vice president, research and development, Adlyfe, Inc. (Rockville, MD, USA). The test is designed to detect sheep scrapie and Cruetzfeld-Jacob disease in humans as well as mad cow disease. The company has 11 patents pending on the technology, which also addresses other protein-folding diseases such as Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease. Adlyfe has demonstrated detection of prion diseases in brain tissue and the blood of cattle, sheep, and humans in clinical laboratory sampling.

"We are very encouraged by the early results of our test which show we can detect disease in blood and tissue samples from animals and humans,” commented Alan S. Rudolph, CEO of Adlyfe. "We look forward to offering a new test for early detection and diagnosis of these debilitating diseases.” Adlyfe is a biotechnology company focused on novel blood diagnostics and therapeutics.




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