To prevent the spread of BSE, many countries banned beef imports from affected regions.

BSE 是 bovine spongiform encephalopathy 的缩写，bovine 意思是"牛的"，spongiform 意思是"海绵状的"，encephalopathy 意思是"脑病"，合起来指"牛海绵状脑病"，即俗称的"疯牛病"。这是一种影响牛中枢神经系统的致命疾病。