Between 1986 and 1989, a disease swept through British cattle herds, which came to be known as Mad Cow disease. Scientists began to suspect that this was somehow related to some human illness. A California neurologist said both humans and animals were suffering from a mutated prion. When defective prions are transmitted from an infected host to a new host, they convert any normal prions they come across into copies of themselves so it is possible for a mutated prion to be transmitted from a cow to a person by eating beef. Dr. Stanley B. Prusiner received a Nobel prize for his work with prion.
Genres: Crime , Documentary
Keywords: coroner , criminal-investigation , evidence , forensic-science , forensic-technology , interview , law-enforcement , medical-examiner , reenactment , suspicion-of-murder , true-crime , whodunit