mad cow disease

American  

1. bovine spongiform encephalopathy.

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mad cow disease British  

noun

1. an informal name for BSE

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mad cow disease Scientific  

/ măd /

1. A degenerative neurologic disease of cattle, thought to be caused by infection-causing agents called prions, in which brain tissues deteriorate and take on a spongy appearance, resulting in abnormal behaviors and loss of muscle control. A variant form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is transmitted to humans through the eating of infected cattle tissue.

2. Also called bovine spongiform encephalopathy

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mad cow disease Cultural  

1. A lethal disease that originates in cows and can spread to humans through consumption of affected neural tissue. It is called Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease in humans. It causes the brain to deteriorate through the instrument of an infectious protein called a prion.

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Etymology

Origin of mad cow disease

1985–90

Example Sentences

South Korea, which is the world’s top importer of American beef, currently bans beef from cattle that are older than 30 months on concerns it may introduce bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease.

From Los Angeles Times

American beef has effectively been banned from the country - which has some of the strictest biosecurity laws in the world - since 2003 after an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, commonly known as mad cow disease.

From BBC

An isolated case of classical BSE - or mad cow disease - was discovered on a farm in Dumfries and Galloway in May.

From BBC

Tallow is not currently FDA-approved for topical use and may come with risks, especially if it’s sourced from cows with certain health conditions and diseases, like mad cow disease.

From Salon

Also known as “zombie deer disease,” chronic wasting disease is a contagious infection similar to mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy.

From Los Angeles Times