Prion News and Research

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Prion strain diversity may be greater than previously thought

The first example of prion strains that replicate independently in vitro and in vivo suggests that strain diversity may be greater than previously thought, according to a study published October 18 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by Jason Bartz of Creighton University, and colleagues.

19 Oct 2018

Study sheds light on molecular mechanisms underlying progression of prion diseases

A new study has shed light on the mechanisms underlying the progression of prion diseases and identified a potential target for treatment.

21 Sep 2018

Discovering Prion-like Proteins in Eukaryotic Viruses

Dr. George Tetz discusses the discovery of prion-like domains in eukaryotic viruses, and the implications of this study on gene therapies and common neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease.

6 Sep 2018

Researchers discover prion-like viral proteins that open new targets for antiviral drugs

Researchers at the Human Microbiology Institute and Tetz Laboratories have discovered thousands of prion-like domains in human viruses, prompting research that opens new ways of viral pathogenicity, suggests new targets for development of new antiviral drugs and links viruses to diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

12 Jul 2018

Scientists discover ‘Big Bang’ of Alzheimer's disease

Scientists have discovered a "Big Bang" of Alzheimer's disease - the precise point at which a healthy protein becomes toxic but has not yet formed deadly tangles in the brain.

11 Jul 2018

Microglia may play key role in slowing progression of prion diseases, research suggests

Prion diseases are slow degenerative brain diseases that occur in people and various other mammals. No vaccines or treatments are available, and these diseases are almost always fatal. Scientists have found little evidence of a protective immune response to prion infections.

17 May 2018

Researchers detect CWD prions in Wisconsin soils for the first time

New research out of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has, for the first time, detected prions responsible for chronic wasting disease (CWD) in samples taken from sites where deer congregate.

4 May 2018

The Truth Behind Donating Your Body to a Medical School

Cambridge University is one of a decreasing number of medical schools where undergraduates learn anatomy primarily through hands-on dissection. Cecilia Brassett, a Clinical Anatomist at The University of Cambridge, discusses her thoughts on the recent rise in donations and explains how the donors are used to train medical students.

27 Apr 2018

Study finds no evidence of chronic wasting disease transmissibility in macaques

Chronic wasting disease did not cross the species barrier to infect cynomolgus macaque monkeys during a lengthy investigation by National Institutes of Health scientists exploring risks to humans.

26 Apr 2018

Mice study illustrates potential risks associated with prion transmission

Familial human prion diseases are passed within families and are associated with 34 known prion protein mutations.

9 Mar 2018

TSRI research offers explanation for why neurons die off in Parkinson's disease

An estimated 10 million people worldwide are living with Parkinson's disease--an incurable neurodegenerative disorder that leads to an increasing loss of motor control.

6 Mar 2018

Plymouth researcher receives grant to further investigate causes of hereditary neuro-tumors

The University of Plymouth will be continuing its research into the advancement of neuro-tumor treatments thanks to more than £100,000 from Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity and Sparks, the medical research charity.

5 Mar 2018

Amyloid protein may be transmitted through neurosurgical instruments, study suggests

Amyloid beta pathology - protein deposits in the brain - might have been transmitted by contaminated neurosurgical instruments, suggests a new UCL-led study.

15 Feb 2018

NIH scientists modify new RT-QuIC assay to detect Parkinson's, dementia with Lewy bodies

National Institutes of Health scientists developing a rapid, practical test for the early diagnosis of prion diseases have modified the assay to offer the possibility of improving early diagnosis of Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies.

9 Feb 2018

‘Sushi-like’ nanodiscs provide structural snapshots of misfolding proteins

When proteins misfold, accumulate and clump around insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, they kill cells. Now, researchers, including University of Michigan biophysicists, have obtained a structural snapshot of these proteins when they are most toxic, detailing them down to the atomic level.

15 Dec 2017

Researchers win NIH grants for Alzheimer's research on Amish resilience and rapid onset

Researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have received two grant awards, in partnership with investigators from other institutions, from the National Institutes of Health to conduct major studies on Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of memory loss and other forms of dementia in older persons.

14 Dec 2017

Study points to possible targets for therapeutic intervention in the fight against ALS

Scientists at the University of Alberta may have found possible targets for therapeutic interventions in the fight against Lou Gehrig's disease.

1 Dec 2017

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease patients harbor infectious prions in their skin

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)- the human equivalent of mad cow disease- is caused by rogue, misfolded protein aggregates termed prions, which are infectious and cause fatal damages in the patient's brain. CJD patients develop signature microscopic sponge-like holes in their brains.

23 Nov 2017

Scientists detect pathological prion protein in skin of CJD patients

Researchers have found that it was possible to detect abnormal prion protein in the skin of 23 people who died from Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD). They also found that exposing mice to skin tissue taken from the CJD patients caused them to develop prion disease.