click here for printer friendly *PDF version.

Serum News Update

January 7, 2004

The USDA has announced that DNA confirmatory testing has verified, to a high degree of certainty, that the BSE cow found in the US state of Washington was born in Alberta, Canada.

January 2, 2004

The USDA is still awaiting the third and final confirmatory BSE test from officials in Weybridge, England. They are also awaiting test results which will confirm the age of the infected cow. Its estimated age is six and a half years and the initial investigation revealed that the animal was born in Alberta, Canada, prior to the initiation of the ruminant feed ban. This animal came into the US with 81 other animals in 2001.

Updated December 26, 2003

The Veterinary Laboratories Agency in Weybridge, England concurs with the interpretation of the USDA tests performed on samples of the suspect cow from Washington state, but will perform additional confirmatory tests on samples from the animal. The USDA "considers this concurrence to be confirmatory of our (USDA NVSL) finding of a positive BSE case" per USDA BSE Update release number 0442.03.

The USDA is continuing its investigation of the origin of the suspect cow.

December 23, 2003

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced a presumptive positive case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in a single, adult, Holstein cow from Washington state. The USDA sent samples from the suspect animal for confirmatory testing to the worldwide reference laboratory in England. The confirmatory test results will be available in three to five days. The USDA remains confident in a safe beef supply.

As a major supplier of fetal bovine and bovine calf sera to life science researchers and to biopharmaceutical production, HyClone Laboratories, Inc. is confident in the safety of its serum supply. HyClone does not collect serum in the state of Washington and maintains careful and thorough documentation as to origin of collection. HyClone employs state-of-the-art collection and processing procedures that ensure the integrity and safety of supply. BSE is a very rare disease found in older, adult cattle. HyClone does not process adult bovine serum from any North American beef processing plant.

It should also be noted that all serum is listed as Category IV in the European Pharmacopoeia Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Monograph, which states “no detectable infectivity” (PhEur 2002, 5.2.8. Minimising the risk of transmitting animal spongiform encephalopathy agents via medicinal products).

We are working closely with clients regarding their particular serum concerns and the USDA to monitor the progress of this situation. We will provide regular updates on HyClone’s website, www.hyclone.com.

Click here to view the news release on the USDA's web site.