Scrapie primarily affects which animals?

Scrapie primarily affects which animals?

• A. Cattle
• B. Sheep and goats
• C. Pigs
• D. Horses

Answer: (B)

Scrapie is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that mainly affects small ruminants. It infects sheep and goats, caused by a misfolded prion protein that leads to progressive neurodegeneration. In affected animals you see signs like intense itching and rubbing, unsteady gait, tremors, and eventually weakness and death. Sheep and goats are the natural hosts in which this disease is most commonly observed, across many regions and production systems. Cattle are associated with a different prion disease (BSE), not scrapie. Pigs and horses are not known to be natural hosts for scrapie. So the animals most affected are sheep and goats.

Scrapie is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that mainly affects small ruminants. It infects sheep and goats, caused by a misfolded prion protein that leads to progressive neurodegeneration. In affected animals you see signs like intense itching and rubbing, unsteady gait, tremors, and eventually weakness and death. Sheep and goats are the natural hosts in which this disease is most commonly observed, across many regions and production systems. Cattle are associated with a different prion disease (BSE), not scrapie. Pigs and horses are not known to be natural hosts for scrapie. So the animals most affected are sheep and goats.