Infectious Processes : Knowledge, Discourse, and the Politics of Prions

In recent years a number of scholars have analyzed the management of BSE, also known as 'mad cow disease'. Thus far, no one has paid attention to the fact that BSE and other transmissible spongiform encephalopathy's (TSEs) are allegedly caused by a novel agent - a prion - distinct from all other known infectious agents such as bacteria and viruses.