bovine spongiform encephalopathy
[ spuhn-juh-fawrm ]
/ ˈspʌn dʒəˌfɔrm /
a fatal neurological disease of cattle, characterized by spongelike changes in the brain and thought to be caused by an infectious prion also implicated in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Abbreviation: BSE
Also called
mad cow disease.
Origin of bovine spongiform encephalopathy
1985–90
Words nearby bovine spongiform encephalopathy
bovet,
bovid,
bovine,
bovine growth hormone,
bovine somatotrophin,
bovine spongiform encephalopathy,
bovril,
bovver,
bovver boots,
bow,
bow and scrape
British Dictionary definitions for bovine spongiform encephalopathy
Medical definitions for bovine spongiform encephalopathy
bovine spongiform encephalopathy
n.
An infectious degenerative brain disease occurring in cattle.
mad cow disease
Scientific definitions for bovine spongiform encephalopathy
bovine spongiform encephalopathy
[ spŭn′jĭ-fôrm′ ]
See mad cow disease.