Regarding our statement, “Although the risk of developing H-type BSE does not increase with the age of the animals, as observed for the L-Type,Citation9 most cases occur in older animals of the age of 8 y and older although in one instance a weak and incompletely proven H-type case has been reported in Switzerland in a 6.5 y old animal,Citation10” we agree with the comments made by Fabienne Serra and Torsten Seuberlich. That is, we acknowledge that the case reported in Switzerland in a 6.5 year old animal thoroughly followed the European Union Reference Laboratory for TSEs and World Organization for Animal Health guide lines. Therefore, we would like to revert to our original statement upon submission of our manuscript, as follows:
“Although the risk of developing H-BSE does not increase with the age of the animals, as observed for the L-TypeCitation9, most cases occur in older animals, with the youngest HBSE case reported in Switzerland in a 6.5 years old animal.Citation10”
We wish to thank Fabienne Serra and Torsten Seuberlich for their comment.
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- Guldimann C, Gsponer M, Dr€ogem€uller C, Oevermann A, Seuberlich T. Atypical H-type bovine spongiform encephalopathy in a cow born after the reinforced feed ban on meat-andbone meal in europe. J Clin Microbiol 2012; 50(12): 4171–74; PMID:23035195