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Fri, 13 Oct 2006 20:07:36 EDT

JACKSON, Wyo. Oct 13, 2006 (AP)— Researchers in Wyoming have found chronic wasting disease in the heart muscle tissue of infected white-tailed deer and elk, the University of Wyoming has announced.

UW researchers say the discovery marks the first time that the disease has been found in the heart tissue. The discovery is important because some hunters eat meat from the heart of animals they kill.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization recommend against eating any animals that test positive for CWD. However, other officials also say there's no scientific evidence that humans can contract the disease from eating infected animals.

The disease is found in elk and deer populations in southeastern Wyoming and in several other states. Chronic wasting disease is in the same family of fatal brain illnesses as mad cow disease and its human equivalent. There is no evidence that people have ever caught chronic wasting disease from infected deer or elk.

Jean Jewell, a research scientist at the UW Department of Veterinary Services, says the discovery of the disease in heart tissue of infected deer and elk should not alarm hunters.

"There is a tendency for people to become alarmed when they hear something that makes them think their health might be at risk, but at this stage there is no evidence to suggest humans are susceptible to CWD," Jewell said.

Terry Kreeger, wildlife veterinarian with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, said Friday that the tests involved captive elk and deer that were intentionally infected with CWD at research facilities in Wyoming and Colorado.

Kreeger said the game department doesn't recommend one way or another whether hunters should eat game animals infected with CWD.

"We simply recommend that they become fully informed with the available research, and public health agencies' recommendations, and decide on their own," Kreeger said. "We do not get involved in the recommendations."

Yet Kreeger said recent scientific research shows that the risk of humans contracting CWD from eating an infected animal, if it exists at all, must be very small.

In addition, Kreeger said, "If there were some evidence that people would get it, we think we would see some incidence of people who have that kind of neurological disease." He said that has not occurred.

While the game department doesn't make recommendations about whether hunters should eat infected animals, the department has recommended against eating tissues, such as the brain and spinal cord, that can hold large amounts of prions.

According to the UW release, a prion is a microscopic protein particle that is responsible for spreading CWD. Prions aren't destroyed by cooking meat.

Based on the new findings, Kreeger said the game department will consider whether it should recommend that hunters avoid eating the heart tissue of animals they kill.

Jewell said that hunters who kill animals in areas where CWD exists should consider taking a sample of their animals to the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory or to the game department for testing.

The lab charges $25 for testing, and results are typically available within two weeks. The game department doesn't charge for testing, but will only test animals from areas where it's currently investigating the incidence of CWD.