SEAC: Q & A on their recommendations

1997

December

Q. What recommendations did SEAC make about the sale of beef on the bone on 2 December 1997?

A. Having reviewed new evidence that BSE infectivity had been found in dorsal root ganglia (nervous tissue lying within the bones of the vertebral column) and, provisionally, bone marrow of experimentally infected cattle SEAC recommended that the new research findings should be made public. If the Government decided that action was necessary SEAC recommended either:

no beef with the bone in from cattle over 6 months old should be sold to the consumer; or

cattle slaughtered between 24 and 30 months of age for human consumption should be deboned under official control by the Meat Hygiene Service in licensed plants.

Q. How great is the risk from dorsal root ganglia?

A. Very small indeed. Infectivity has only been found in animals over 30 months, and, except for a very small number of very low risk cattle from Beef Assurance Scheme herds, such animals do not enter the food chain. SEAC studied a specially commissioned risk assessment by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) before giving the advice above.

Q. What about bone marrow?

A. SEAC noted the results from the experiment and considered them provisional, requiring further work before definite conclusions could be drawn. Previous tests on bone marrow from clinically affected animals in the field have proved negative. SEAC considered further the issue of infectivity in DRG and bone marrow at its meeting in November 1998 but did not recommend any further action.

Q. What recommendations did SEAC make about feeding animal by-products to animals of the same species?

A. They recommended that the Government develop a strategy to remove the risk of TSE transmission from intraspecies recycling of pig and poultry waste at the earliest opportunity and that this was discussed with EC partners.

Q. Why did SEAC advise a new strategy regarding within-species feeding?

A. As a precautionary measure, to prevent the possible occurrence of an epidemic of a BSE-like disease in pigs or poultry. Although there are no known naturally occurring transmissible spongiform encephalopathies in pigs or poultry it is believed that they could in theory occur spontaneously in various species.

October

Q. What advice did SEAC give on leucodepletion following its meetings in October 1997?

A. In October 1997 SEAC gave advice on the safety of human blood and blood products. The Committee believed that recent research suggests that the pathogenesis of vCJD differs from classical CJD and that the former may have more involvement of lymphoreticular tissues possibly involving circulating lymphocytes. The Committee concluded it was logical, therefore, to minimise any risk from blood or blood products by reducing the number of lymphocytes present. SEAC recommended that Government should consider a precautionary policy of extending the use of leucodepleted blood and blood products as far as is practicable and that risk assessments be carried out to inform decisions on any measures which may be necessary to protect recipients. [On the subsequent advice of the Committee on Safety of Medicines the Government decided to use non-UK plasma in the manufacture of blood products.]

Q. What did SEAC say about the suggested link between organophosphates and BSE?

A. The Committee considered further papers relevant to the hypothesis that the organophosphate (OP), Phosmet, is in some way causally linked to the BSE epidemic. It was noted that the epidemiological evidence is better accounted for by the view that the BSE epidemic is due to the widespread use of animal feed contaminated with the transmissible agent of BSE than by the OP theory. Central to the latter is the bio-accumulation of OP in treated animals, however the available evidence does not support such accumulation. The Committee concluded that further experimental evidence would be required to justify further consideration of a role for organophosphates in the epidemiology of BSE. Proponents of the theory were free to apply to funding agencies for resources to conduct such experiments.

Q. The Committee also reviewed the production and use of tallow and gelatin. What were their findings?

A. The Committee noted the restrictions in the UK on the sources of raw material used in the production of tallow for food, feed, cosmetic, medical or pharmaceutical products and was impressed by the UK tallow production controls. The Committee also noted that UK plants manufacturing of gelatin for food, feed, cosmetic, medical or pharmaceutical use had been brought under official control and that all UK gelatin manufactured for these purposes from bovine raw material used only imported ingredients. The Committee were aware that the implementation of Commission Decision 97/534/EC would exclude Specified Risk Material (SRMs) from use in the production and manufacture of gelatin and tallow in all Member states.

September

Q. What did SEAC say about a link between BSE and vCJD on 16 September 1997?

A. At their meeting SEAC considered new scientific evidence, subsequently published on 02 October 1997 in ‘Nature’, which provided convincing evidence that the agent that causes BSE is the same as that which causes vCJD. SEAC concluded that the necessary measures were in place to protect human and animal health and saw no need for any changes in the light of the new findings.

June

Q. What conclusions did SEAC reach regarding the link between BSE and vCJD in its paper dated June 1997?

A. SEAC’s paper summarised the key research results which had emerged since March 1996 as to whether or not there is a causal link between BSE and vCJD. It concluded that the evidence that had accumulated since the 20th March 1996 announcement is consistent with the hypothesis that vCJD is caused by exposure to the BSE agent. However, SEAC regarded the evidence to date as insufficient to constitute formal scientific proof of a causative link. They concluded that further data would be required before a firm conclusion could be reached. In March 1999 SEAC reviewed its public statement on the link between vCJD and BSE made originally in March 1996.

May

Q. What were SEAC’s conclusions and recommendations in May 1997?

A.These were as follows:

On sheep and goats

In May 1997, SEAC considered the need to take further action against the possible risk of BSE in sheep and goats. They recommended that action be taken on specified risk materials, preferably on an EU wide basis and that a compulsory slaughter and compensation scheme be introduced for scrapie affected sheep and goats. SEAC also recommended that MAFF conduct an abattoir survey and a postal survey of farmers, to improve the surveillance of scrapie in sheep and goats. The slaughter and compensation scheme was introduced on 29 July 1998, the preliminary stages of the abattoir survey have recently been concluded, and the postal survey took place in November/December 1998.

On imports of beef and sheep products from other Member States

SEAC provided Ministers with independent scientific advice concerning imports into the UK of material containing tissues from the central nervous system (CNS).

The Committee considered that the health of UK consumer would best be served if the current UK SBM controls were extended also to imports of CNS, or material containing CNS, from the EU and those third countries which are not regarded as BSE-free. In reaching its conclusion, SEAC took note of a draft report from the EU Commission on the surveillance and control of BSE in other Member States.

Whilst SEAC would have preferred action to be taken on an EU-wide basis, pending such an agreement in Europe on this issue, unilateral action by the UK was recommended

 

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