Japan quells mad cow disease fears

TOKYO -- A cow suspected of being Japan's second case of mad cow disease tested negative for the illness, the government said Friday, quelling concerns for now that the brain-wasting illness was spreading.

Samples taken from the slaughtered animal revealed that it was not infected as feared after a preliminary examination, said Health Ministry spokesman Yoshifumi Kachi.

Health Minister Chikara Sakaguchi held a news conference late Friday night to apologize for stoking public fears.

"I am relieved," Kyodo News agency quoted him as saying. "The uproar was inexcusable."

Scientists have found links between beef infected with mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which is fatal to humans. Mad cow disease has devastated Europe's cattle industry.

Earlier Friday, Tokyo's main wholesale meat market stopped sales of beef and internal organs from 509 cows butchered over the past two days.

The market, operated by the Tokyo government, also planned recall to meat already sold to retailers, said market spokesman Mamoru Sato.

The Tokyo government said in a statement that sales would not resume until safety was verified. It was unclear whether officials would continue sales following the announcement of the test results.