Inactivation of the BSE agent

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Medicine
• Microbiology
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) agents, including the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) agent, exhibit high resistance to conventional inactivation methods like autoclaving and sodium hydroxide.
• These agents can survive certain rendering processes used in the food industry.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of different inactivation procedures against the BSE agent.
• To determine effective methods for decontaminating BSE-contaminated materials, particularly bone-derived products.

Main Methods:

• Exposure of BSE agent to sodium hypochlorite solutions.
• Assessment of combined heat and alkali treatments (e.g., autoclaving with sodium hydroxide).
• Validation studies using BSE-spiked bone-derived materials treated with sodium hydroxide.

Main Results:

• BSE agent is resistant to autoclaving and sodium hydroxide alone but effectively inactivated by high-concentration sodium hypochlorite.
• Combining heat and alkali treatments provides reliable inactivation of TSE agents, including a mouse-passaged BSE strain.
• Treatment of acid-treated bone with 0.3 M sodium hydroxide for two hours eliminated residual BSE infectivity.

Conclusions:

• Sodium hypochlorite is a potent inactivating agent for the BSE agent.
• Combined heat and alkali treatments are highly effective for inactivating BSE infectivity.
• Specific protocols involving sodium hydroxide can ensure the safety of bone-derived materials.