Prion Disease News and Research

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Discovery of novel prion infectivity in white and brown fat tissues of mice

Prion diseases, also known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, are infectious progressive fatal neurodegenerative diseases which affect humans as well as wild and domestic animals.

5 Dec 2008

Mad Cow disease strain found to be more virulent than classical strain

An atypical prion strain of mad cow disease, also called bovine spongiform encephalopathy or BS, is more virulent than the classical strain, according to a researcher who spoke Nov. 14 at Kansas State University.

3 Dec 2008

Mouse model of prion disease mimics diverse symptoms of human disorder

A comprehensive mouse model of inherited prion disease exhibits cognitive, motor, and neurophysiological deficits that bear a striking resemblance to the symptoms experienced by patients with the human version of "mad cow disease," Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD).

26 Nov 2008

New molecules with many branches will help unleash potential of nanotechnology

Materials science and the pharmaceutical industry could soon be revolutionized by emerging nanotechnologies based on designer molecules with long complex tree-and branch structures. Such molecules offer almost limitless scope for design of bespoke compounds for specific applications in disease therapy, for novel materials such as resins, as well as electronic displays, and energy storage. Almost every field involving design and synthesis of chemical compounds will be transformed by the arrival of technologies allowing nanoscale design of these branched molecules, known as hyperbranched polymers.

26 Oct 2008

Worries over test for mad cow disease

A new test to screen blood for the incurable human form of mad cow disease could be available within 18 months, but it has raised concerns.

21 Oct 2008

Magnetic resonance studies find clear differences between the structures of infectious and non-infectious prions

Infectious proteins known as prions have been identified as the cause of "mad cow" disease (BSE). The culprits are "incorrectly folded" proteins that can "infect" healthy proteins. The molecular bases for such prion diseases are not yet fully understood.

17 Jun 2008

An atomic view of protein behind hereditary cerebral amyloid angiopathy

For the first time, researchers have peered deeply at the atomic level into the protein that causes hereditary cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) -- a disease thought to cause stroke and dementia.

22 Apr 2008

Prion diseases could be transmitted in sheep via milk

Scrapie can be transmitted to lambs through milk, according to new research published in the online open access journal BMC Veterinary Research.

8 Apr 2008

New insights into the diversity of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease agents

Researchers from the United Kingdom and France have identified four separate biochemical subgroups in a selection of cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

18 Mar 2008

Prion infection of neurons increases the free cholesterol content in cell membranes

A new study published in the online open access journal BMC Biology suggests that disturbances in membrane cholesterol may be the mechanism by which prions cause neurodegeneration and could point to a role for cholesterol in other neurodegenerative diseases.

12 Feb 2008

Scientists characterize Alzheimer's neurotoxin structure - potential new treatment approaches

Amyloid plaques, the hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, are clumps of fiber-like misfolded proteins which many experts think cause this devastating neurodegenerative disease.

4 Dec 2007

Levels of prion protein in brain may not be reliable marker for disease

Rapid diagnostic testing used to check for the presence of prion diseases such as “mad cow disease” might fail to identify some highly infectious samples, researchers have found.

3 Dec 2007

New method for detecting and characterizing prions

An effective and sensitive new method for detecting and characterizing prions, the infectious compounds behind diseases like mad cow disease, is now being launched by researchers at Linköping University in Sweden, among other institutions.

21 Nov 2007

Aggregation propensity, amyloid peptide toxicity and Alzheimer disease

Cells have evolved multiple mechanisms to ensure proper folding, but a number of molecular and biophysical events - such as changes in pH or temperature, mutations, and oxidation - can disrupt a protein's native shape.

31 Oct 2007

First high-res 3D structures of first mammalian GRP94 protein solved

Dr. Dan Gewirth, Hauptman-Woodward senior research scientist, has just solved the structure of the first mammalian GRP94 protein implicated in immune diseases such as sepsis, AIDS and certain cancers.

15 Oct 2007

Lymph nodes can be crucial for spreading low doses of infective prion agents

Lymph nodes can be crucial for spreading low doses of infective prion agents - the pathogens responsible for conditions such as scrapie and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease - into the nervous system, according to new research published in the online open access journal BMC Veterinary Research.

25 Sep 2007