Chastek paralysis

Chas·tek paralysis .chas-.tek- n a fatal paralytic vitamin deficiency of foxes and minks that are bred in captivity and fed raw fish and that is caused by enzymatic inactivation of thiamine by thiaminase present in the fish

Chas·tek 'chas-.tek John Simeon (1886-1954)

American breeder of fur-bearing animals. In 1932 in Glencoe, Minnesota, a new disease of foxes was recognized for the first time on Chastek's farm. R. G. Green and C. A. Evans studied the pathology of the disease and in 1940 published an article in which they reported that the paralysis was due to a deficiency of thiamine caused by the presence of raw fish in the diet.

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progressive ataxia and paralysis in silver foxes due to thiamine deficiency following a dietary change from meat to raw fish that contains a thiamine-destroying enzyme.