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Kuru
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'''Kuru''' is a fatal human disease caused by ritualistic cannibalism formerly practiced by the Fore people , in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea. It Kuru is a member of the [[Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies|transmissible spongiform encephalopathy]] (TSE) neurological disease family, which also includes [[Mad cow disease|bovine spongiform encephalopathy]] (BSE or mad cow disease) in cattle, [[scrapie]] in sheep, and the different forms of [[Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease]] (CJD) in humans. Besides cannibalism, kuru can also be transmitted via contact with open sores.
The Fore word "kuru" means "shiver"; kuru is also called "trembling" or "laughing disease," due to infected people's behavior. Similar to other TSE diseases, kuru symptoms include convulsions, unsteady gait, personality changes, slurred speech, an increasing loss of muscle control, and eventually entering a comatose state. The disease has a long incubation period of up to several decades; most kuru victims die 6 to 12 months after the first symptoms appear.[http://www.ninds.nih.gov/health_and_medical/disorders/kuru.htm]
:The Karolinska Institute has not awarded the Nobel prize for this year to Gajdusek for his demonstration of the danger of cannibalism. The importance of his discovery of the origin of the kuru disease lies in the identification of a new class of human diseases caused by unique infectious agents. The fact that kuru, which lacks the classic signs of infections, still is caused by a contagious agent implies that we must investigate whether certain other diseases may arise in a similar way. An unusual form of presenile dementia of wide dissemination has also been shown by Gajdusek to be caused by an infectious agent.
According to the U.S. [[National Institutes of Health]], "Government discouragement of the practice of cannibalism led to a continuing decline in the disease, which has now mostly disappeared."[http://www.ninds.nih.gov/health_and_medical/disorders/kuru.htm]
==SourceWatch Resources==
*[[Mad cow disease]] - contains list of links to TSE/ Kuru-related entries
