[Chronology of the new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease].

INTRODUCTION

The appearance of a new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and the particular conditions of this appearance, have caused a minor scientific and social upheaval in Europe. The possible relation between it and the epidemic of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in the United Kingdom led to a real scientific 'race against time' to discover the agent causing the two conditions and a possible link between them, and made the rare group of diseases known as prionic diseases fashionable.

DEVELOPMENT: The aim of this article is to describe the development of events concerning the appearance of this condition, considering them objectively from the point of view of an outside observer. We discuss the different phases of the story, from the initial perplexity at the appearance of the epidemic of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, followed by uncertainty when the new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease was described and the possible relation between the two conditions.

CONCLUSION

Everything concerning this process, including the different attitudes and opinions of the social, political and scientific groups involved, could form the plot of a top best selling novel of the moment.