Lena Dabbas

My name is Lena Dabbas and I am a Master’s student at the University of Lethbridge researching ways to improve the early detection of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), a fatal neurodegenerative disease in cattle. As there is currently no pre-mortem diagnostic method for BSE, my work focuses on evaluating neurofilament light chain protein (NfL) as a potential biomarker for use before clinical signs appear. NfL is released from the brain into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood during neuronal damage, and my research investigates its correlation with abnormal prion protein (PrPSc) accumulation in the brain. By comparing NfL levels in CSF and blood samples from BSE-infected cattle and healthy controls, my study aims to contribute to the development of a less-invasive, pre-mortem diagnostic tool. The findings could help reduce public health risks, prevent food chain contamination, and minimize economic losses through earlier disease detection and control.