Madrid - The Spanish health authorities are investigating the death of a woman whose son died earlier of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), the human variant of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease, experts said Wednesday in Madrid.

If it is confirmed that the woman and her son died from the same cause, they would be the first members of the same family in the world to succumb to CJD, neuropathologist Alberto Rabano said.

The woman, who was about 60-years-old, passed away last week in the northern city of Leon. The son died in February. Their identities were not given.

Veterinary experts said the son caught the disease by eating infected meat before 2001, when preventative measures were adopted. (dpa)