London - Renewed alarm over the threat of "mad cow disease" has been raised after it emerged that a young woman contracted the new CJD strain linked to cattle after being a vegetarian for 12 years.
Ms Clare Tomkins (24) became a strict vegetarian in 1985, a year before the first cases of BSE were detected in cattle.
Some experts fear it could mean the incubation period of the disease is longer than has been thought - fuelling fears of a future CJD epidemic. Others think the sources of the "new variant" CJD might have to be re-examined.