Scrapie and CWD are horizontally transmissible, and the environment likely serves as a stable reservoir of infectious prions, facilitating a sustained incidence of CWD in free-ranging cervid populations and complicating efforts to eliminate disease in captive herds. Prions will enter the environment through mortalities and/or shedding from live hosts. Unfortunately, a sensitive detection method to identify prion contamination in environmental samples has not yet been developed. An environmentally-relevant prion model must be used in experimental studies. Changes in PrP(Sc) structure upon environmental exposure may be as significant as changes in PrP(Sc) quantity, since the structure can directly affect infectivity and disease pathology. Prions strongly bind to soil and remain infectious. Conformational changes upon adsorption, competitive sorption and potential for desorption and transport all warrant further investigation. Mitigation of contaminated carcasses or soil might be accomplished with enzyme treatments or composting in lieu of incineration.

中文翻译：

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环境中的朊病毒：发生、命运和缓解。

痒病和 CWD 可水平传播，环境可能是传染性朊病毒的稳定储存库，促进 CWD 在自由放养的鹿种群中持续发生，并使消除圈养牛群疾病的努力复杂化。朊病毒会通过死亡和/或从活宿主身上脱落进入环境。不幸的是，尚未开发出一种灵敏的检测方法来识别环境样品中的朊病毒污染。在实验研究中必须使用与环境相关的朊病毒模型。环境暴露后 PrP(Sc) 结构的变化可能与 PrP(Sc) 数量的变化一样重要，因为该结构可以直接影响传染性和疾病病理。朊病毒与土壤紧密结合并保持传染性。吸附后的构象变化，竞争性吸附以及解吸和运输的潜力都值得进一步调查。可以通过酶处理或堆肥代替焚烧来减轻受污染的尸体或土壤。