Prion Leaves Lasting Mark On Memory (redOrbit) Prions are a special class of proteins best known as the source for mad cow and other neurodegenerative diseases. [News Source]

U.S. Cuts Animal-Tracking Plan Created After Mad Cow (Update2) (Bloomberg) Feb. 5 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. is scrapping a national system to track livestock from birth to slaughter as industry opposition led to the failure of a voluntary program created after cases of mad cow disease emerged starting in 2003. [News Source]

Mad Cow meat fears (Northern Star) Bill and Lyn Bolin, who farm beef on their Eden Creek property, have slammed beef industry associations over their subservience to the Federal Government. They say that allowing beef to be imported from BSE-affected countries will cripple the local industry. [News Source]

USDA plans to drop program to trace livestock. Faced with stiff resistance from ranchers and farmers, the Obama administration has decided to scrap a national program intended to help authorities quickly identify and track livestock in the event of an animal disease outbreak. [News Source]

Prions May Help Memories Persist (Medical News Today) Prions, proteins better known for the "negative" role they play in spreading mad cow disease, may also have a positive and important role in helping memories persist. This tentative suggestion was the conclusion of a study by Dr Kausik Si of Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, Missouri, Nobel laureate Dr Eric Kandel of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia ... [News Source]

U.S.D.A. Plans to Drop Program to Trace Livestock (New York Times) A plan to identify animals and track them in case of a disease outbreak was widely opposed by farmers and ranchers. [News Source]

Prion leaves lasting mark on memory (Science Daily) Prions are a special class of proteins best known as the source for mad cow and other neurodegenerative diseases. Despite this negative reputation, a prion may also have important and very positive roles in brain function. The researchers suggest that a prion-like protein may participate in memory in higher eukaryotes, from sea slugs on up. [News Source]