Bovine Johne's Disease was confirmed yesterday [July 10th] in a beef herd near Albany, about 400km south of Perth.
It is the first case of its kind in Western Australia since 1994, but Animal Health Australia said the disease was known to have infected about 1350 cattle herds in NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.
The highly infectious disease, which is most common in dairy cows, wastes the animal's intestines, preventing the absorption of minerals and proteins.
Johne's Disease is caused by Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis and is suspected of causing Crohn's Disease in humans. The University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine has a webpage devoted to the controversy:
The triggering event for Crohn's disease is thought to occur early in life and then be followed by a 15-30 year incubation or latency period. Johne's disease also has a long interval between infection with M. paratuberculosis and onset of clinical signs (2-10 years). Clinical signs in both diseases are seldom seen before sexual maturity. Interestingly, a strong inverse relationship was found between Crohn's disease and gastric cancer using data from 26 countries.
PARA, the Paratuberculosis Awareness & Research Association, has more information on the bacterial theory:
In the early 1900's, the disease we call today "Crohn's disease" was characterized as an infectious disease, specifically intestinal tuberculosis. However, by the early 1930's, definitive classification (proof) that this disease was infectious was not forthcoming. More specifically, when Dr. Burrill B. Crohn failed to prove an infectious cause in 1932, the disease became formally known as "Crohn's disease" (named after Dr. Crohn) and the search for an infectious cause was largely discontinued.
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