Mad cow意思

"Mad cow" is a colloquial term that refers to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), a fatal neurodegenerative disease that affects cattle. The term "mad cow" comes from the symptoms of the disease, which include abnormal behavior and a loss of coordination, leading to the appearance of a "mad" or "insane" cow.

BSE is caused by misfolded proteins called prions, which accumulate in the brain and spinal cord of affected animals, leading to the characteristic spongy appearance of the brain tissue. The disease is transmissible to humans who consume infected beef products, causing a variant form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), a fatal brain disease in humans.

The outbreak of BSE in the United Kingdom in the 1980s and 1990s led to the implementation of strict regulations on the use of animal by-products in feed, which has significantly reduced the incidence of the disease in cattle populations around the world. However, BSE continues to be a concern for animal and human health, and surveillance and prevention measures are still in place to mitigate the risk of outbreaks.