Prion News and Research

RSS

Research shows how prion-like proteins critical for maintaining long-term memories

Research from Eric Kandel's lab at Columbia University Medical Center has uncovered further evidence of a system in the brain that persistently maintains memories for long periods of time. And paradoxically, it works in the same way as mechanisms that cause mad cow disease, kuru, and other degenerative brain diseases.

3 Jul 2015

UAlberta scientists explore physical principles underlying formation of misfolded protein aggregates

Working towards the ultimate goal to develop therapeutics to treat diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS, and BSE (Mad Cow Disease), University of Alberta scientists Michael Woodside, Hao Yu, and Derek Dee are investigating the physical principles underlying the formation of misfolded protein aggregates.

26 Jun 2015

Prion variant offers “dramatic” protection against prion disease

A naturally occurring variant of the human prion protein is not only resistant to conversion into an abnormal form but also prevents the conversion of wild-type proteins, shows a study in Nature.

12 Jun 2015

Academics from University of Zurich selected to receive EU's most prestigious research grant

Two male academics and one female academic from the University of Zurich have been selected to receive the EU's most prestigious research grant. Each will receive between 2.5 and 2.9 million Euro to support innovative research projects over the next five years.

1 Jun 2015

Grass plants can bind, uptake and transport infectious prions

Grass plants can bind, uptake and transport infectious prions, according to researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

18 May 2015

Reducing protocol time for 96-well PCR Assays

The virus and prion validation group at Octapharma GmbH (Frankfurt, Germany) reports how implementing an INTEGRA VIAFLO 96 has enabled them to reduce the time taken to undertake PCR assays by greater than 60%...

From INTEGRA Biosciences 12 May 2015

Worthington introduces new line of Animal/Xeno-Free products for biomedical research at EB 2015

Worthington announced today the introduction of several new grades of Collagenase, recombinant Nucleases DNase I and RNases A, T1 & T2 and Neutral Protease (Dispase). All certified Animal/Xeno-Free (AF) to minimize potential BSE/TSE (prion) and mammalian virus contamination risks associated with bovine and other animal-sourced enzymes for primary and stem cell isolation, bioprocessing and other biopharm related applications.

1 Apr 2015

Study identifies small loop in human prion protein that resists chronic wasting disease

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) — an infectious disease caused by prions — affects North American elk and deer, but has not been observed in humans. Using a mouse model that expresses an altered form of the normal human prion protein, researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have determined why the human proteins aren't corrupted when exposed to the elk prions.

24 Feb 2015

TSRI scientists discover novel mechanism involved in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and ALS

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have for the first time discovered a killing mechanism that could underpin a range of the most intractable neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and ALS.

16 Feb 2015

'Mad Cow' discovery points to possible neuron killing mechanism behind alzheimer’s and parkinson’s diseases

The new study, published recently in the journal Brain, revealed the mechanism of toxicity of a misfolded form of the protein that underlies prion diseases, such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (“mad cow disease”) and its human equivalent, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

13 Feb 2015

Scrapie pathogens can convert human prion protein to a pathological state

INRA scientists have shown for the first time that the pathogens responsible for scrapie in small ruminants (prions) have the potential to convert the human prion protein from a healthy state to a pathological state. In mice models reproducing the human species barrier, this prion induces a disease similar to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

24 Dec 2014

First successful vaccination of deer against chronic wasting disease

Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and elsewhere say that a vaccination they have developed to fight a brain-based, wasting syndrome among deer and other animals may hold promise on two additional fronts: Protecting U.S. livestock from contracting the disease, and preventing similar brain infections in humans.

23 Dec 2014

UC Berkeley, UCSF researchers team up to create center for neurodegenerative disease research

Researchers at UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley have teamed up to create an innovative, integrated center for research on neurodegenerative diseases. Supported by a $3 million grant from the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research, the new center aims to pave the way to developing novel treatments for diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease by investigating the many ways that proteins can malfunction within cells.

10 Oct 2014

Infectious prion protein is marker for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

The misfolded and infectious prion protein that is a marker for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease - linked to the consumption of infected cattle meat - has been detected in the urine of patients with the disease by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School.

8 Aug 2014

Self-repairing mechanism of adult brain can help preserve brain function in Alzheimer's

New research, led by scientists at the University of Southampton, has found that neurogenesis, the self-repairing mechanism of the adult brain, can help to preserve brain function in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Prion or Parkinson's.

19 Jun 2014

Research professor of Emory receives 2014 MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research

Lary C. Walker, PhD, research professor of neuropharmacology and neurologic diseases and associate professor of neurology, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, is a recipient of the 2014 MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research. The winners were recognized at a scientific briefing and awards ceremony today in New York.

16 May 2014

MetLife announces recipients of 2014 MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research

MetLife Foundation today announced the recipients of the 2014 MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research.

16 May 2014

Scientists find new insight into interaction between proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease

Getting to the bottom of Alzheimer's disease has been a rapidly evolving pursuit with many twists, turns and controversies. In the latest crook in the research road, scientists have found a new insight into the interaction between proteins associated with the disease. The report, which appears in the journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience, could have important implications for developing novel treatments.

25 Apr 2014

UCSF/Daiichi Sankyo establish drug-discovery collaboration focused on neurodegenerative diseases

Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) and UC San Francisco (UCSF) announced today that they have established a drug-discovery collaboration focused on developing novel therapeutics and molecular diagnostics for multiple neurodegenerative diseases.

4 Apr 2014

New probes help to quantify normally folded and misfolded conformations of protein in cells

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have invented small-molecule folding probes that enable them to quantify functional, normally folded and disease-associated misfolded conformations (shapes) of a protein-of-interest in cells under different conditions.

5 Mar 2014