Re: Irradiation and BSE (mad cow disease)

["Bjorn Cedervall" <bcradsafers@hotmail.com>]

>Could someone tell me whether or not irradiation of beef would render
it fit for human use even though the beef came from BSE infected
livestock?
---
Since the target is small (MW size order of prions is about 30,000 acording 
to one source I have) very high doses would be needed - I don't know an 
answer but a preliminary _guess_ is that at least the order of 10 000 Gy (1 
000 000 rad) would be needed - strictly speaking it is a matter of 
statistics to get the last protein. At that point it is reasonable to assume 
that a lot of radical chemistry would have modified a large fraction of 
other biomolecules (including lipids) that contribute to a positive taste. 
Please correct me if this seems like a too wild speculation or guesstimate.

Bjorn Cedervall   bcradsafers@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/bjorn_cedervall/

_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com

************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html