Variant of mad cow disease may be transmitted by blood transfusions, according to animal study

Blood transfusions are a valuable treatment mechanism in modern medicine, but can come with the risk of donor disease transmission. Researchers are continually studying the biology of blood products to understand how certain diseases are transmitted in an effort to reduce this risk during blood transfusions. According to a study in sheep prepublished online in Blood, the official journal of the American Society of Hematology, the risk of transmitting bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, commonly known as "mad cow disease") by blood transfusion is surprisingly high.