OREGON - APHIS under orders to change BSE test protocol
In no uncertain terms, the secretary of agriculture directed a change in U.S. bovine spongiform encephalopathy protocols June 24. It came after he announced that an international laboratory confirmed the disease in brain tissue that USDA’s National Veterinary Laboratory said was negative after two immunohistochemistry tests run in November.“I am calling for a change in our testing. I have directed our scientists to work with international experts to develop protocol for simultaneously performing the IHC and the Western blot test in the event of another inconclusive screening test,†Johanns said in his telephonic news conference. “I have also called for a careful analysis of the antibodies we are using to conduct the IHC test to make sure that we’re using the most current and the best option.â€
Source: Capital Press