At least 48 cases have been detected in the province of New Brunswick in Canada and the origin has not yet been identified.
A mysterious neurological disease has appeared in Canada in the province of New Brunswick.
It particularly worries doctors because the pathology affects a fairly young population: adults between 20 and 30 years old who had been in good health so far.
For the time being, the origin remains unknown, but the cases detected are geographically located in the province.
The first alert on this pathology was announced at spring 2021. She was reporting 48 cases. But since then, the cases would have multiplied according to The Guardian. Can go up to 150 cases regarding. At least eight of whom are believed to have died as a result of this disease.
Symptoms that develop quickly
When a person is infected, they develop disturbing symptoms and these are growing rapidly.
The patient presents first, a pweight loss and insomnia before declining neurologically, the person subsequently has mobility and thinking difficulties and hallucinations, as reported Science and the Future.
Among the latter, some patients have confided to having a sensation that “insects swarm on their skin” for example.
The deterioration of health of the patient is done quickly, between 18 and 36 months until a possible death. This is what particularly worries scientists.
The origins of the disease still unknown
Initially in the spring of 2021, as the symptoms made Creutzfeldt-Jakob think of mad cow disease, but a priori it would not necessarily be a prion disease.
To find out, you have to perform an autopsy. And for the moment there is no link between this pathology and prions.
Another hypothesis is considered: environmental pollution.
Indeed a neurotoxine, such as β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA), from lobsters might be the cause of this disease.
This toxin as the scientific publication Toxins the report in 2018 is produced by cyanobacteria and triggers neurological diseases.
But as long as the origin is not identified, it is even more difficult to make a diagnosis.
For the time being, the disease and its causes remain enigmatic, but researchers are continuing their research. But a report on the situation is expected to be delivered before the end of January.
