In late 1995, two young people were diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease – a rare disease typically seen in elderly patients. Post-mortem examinations of their brains revealed deposits of prions – the infectious agents that cause scrapie, kuru, and mad cow disease.
但英国牛肉是不安全的。1995年末，两位年轻人被诊断为克雅二氏症，这是一种罕见的、通常见于老年人的疾病。验尸官在他们的大脑中发现了朊病毒沉积，即痒病、库鲁病和疯牛病的病原。但它们并非典型克雅二氏症的朊病毒。自此以后，“新型”克雅二氏症夺走了约300人的生命。