Experimental transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Tissues taken from 10 patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) were inoculated to many species of small rodents and primates. Successful transmission was done from 9 patients with a varied incidence after different incubation periods. After the second passage, the incidence became high and incubation periods were reduced approximately to four months in mice. Squirrel monkeys needed the longest incubation period in our experiments. Intracerebral inoculation was the fastest route of transmission followed by other parenteral and oral routes. Spongiform change and gliosis in the CNS were common pathological changes, though their distribution was peculiar to each animal species. The distribution in mice differed with each inoculated material taken from the patients, suggesting the multiplicity of CJD agents. Unconventional properties of the causative agent disclosed through this animal model were discussed.