ILSI Europe Report Series
Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of Johne’s disease in cattle, sheep and goats, and occurs in some non-ruminants, including primates. Heat treatment is the most effective measure to reduce MAP during the manufacture of milk and milk products, and of meat and products derived from meat. However, anomalously high heat tolerances of fractions of MAP populations have been reported, though not explained, and low level survival has been demonstrated in some surveys of commercially pasteurised milk.
There have been reports of a potential association between MAP and Crohn’s disease in humans. At present the complexity of the human disease is such that definitive answers cannot be given, though most recent studies do not support a causal link. However, the possibility should not be ignored. Issues that remain include the possibility of an association of MAP with the disease and, should there prove to be an association, the dose response relationship that would allow a proper risk assessment to be undertaken, targeting all possible sources of MAP. The report has identified a number of gaps, particularly with respect to the heat tolerance of MAP, and to sources of MAP other than dairy, especially water and meat.
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