LSU Diagnostics collaborates with state partners to detect Chronic Wasting Disease in deer
Since 2019, LSU Diagnostics has worked in close partnership with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries to provide surveillance testing for Chronic Wasting Disease in the state’s deer population. That collaboration led to a significant milestone in 2022 when CWD was detected for the first time in deer along the Mississippi and Louisiana border.
Veterinarians on Alert: The Alarming Rise of a Fatal 'Zombie Deer Disease
In a startling development, hunters across North America are unwittingly finding themselves on the front lines of a public health threat due to chronic wasting disease (CWD), a rapidly spreading and always fatal neurological condition affecting deer. Infectious disease experts are raising alarms about the potential risks of this disease, which is caused by misfolded proteins called prions and currently known to infect only members of the cervid family, including elk, deer, reindeer, caribou, and moose.