Heterogeneity of pathological prion protein accumulation in the brain of moose (Alces alces) from Norway, Sweden and Finland with chronic wasting disease

Abstract

Prion diseases are a group of neurodegenerative, transmissible, and fatal disorders that affect several animal species. They are characterized by the conformational conversion of the cellular prion protein (PrP^C) into the pathological prion protein (PrP^Sc). In 2016, chronic wasting disease (CWD) gained great importance at European level due to the first disease detection in a wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) in Norway. The subsequent intensive CWD surveillance launched in cervids resulted in the detection of CWD in moose (Alces alces), with 11 cases in Norway, 3 in Finland and 4 in Sweden. These moose cases differ considerably from CWD cases in North American and reindeer in Norway, as PrP^Sc was detectable in the brain but not in lymphoid tissues. These facts suggest the occurrence of a new type of CWD. Here, we show some immunohistochemical features that are clearly different from CWD cases in North American and Norwegian reindeer. Further, the different types of PrP^Sc deposits found among moose demonstrate strong variations between the cases, supporting the postulation that these cases could carry multiple strains of CWD.

Keywords: CWD; Finland; Norway; Sweden; chronic wasting disease; moose; prion disease; prions; transmissible spongiform encephalopathy.