Prion News and Research

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Research provides new insight into the effect of misfolded proteins in neurodegenerative disorders

Research by the University of Southampton has provided new insight into the consequence of accumulated 'misfolded proteins' in neurodegenerative disorders, such as Prion and Alzheimer's disease.

16 Feb 2014

Prions and their shadow proteins: an interview with Dr Jiri Safar, Co-Director of the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center

The prion diseases were originally discovered by Dr Gajdusek and Dr Gibbs. The first disease discovered was Kuru, which was affecting native tribes in the Papua New Guinea highlands in the 1950s.

9 Feb 2014

Study shows similarities in pathogenesis of neurological diseases and HIV virus

A new study by George Washington University (GW) researcher Michael Bukrinsky, M.D., Ph.D., shows similarities in the pathogenesis of prion disease — misfolded proteins that can lead to neurological diseases — and the HIV virus.

5 Feb 2014

Researchers identify important steps to understand mechanisms underlying pathogenic effect of prions

"When they are healthy, they look like tiny spheres; when they are malignant, they appear as cubes" stated Giuseppe Legname, principal investigator of the Prion Biology Laboratory at the Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA) in Trieste, when describing prion proteins.

25 Jan 2014

Research uncovers new mechanism in brain cells that may help keep deadly neurological diseases in check

New research from David Westaway, PhD, of the University of Alberta and Jiri Safar, MD, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has uncovered a quality control mechanism in brain cells that may help keep deadly neurological diseases in check for months or years.

17 Jan 2014

Research findings may offer new way to treat prion diseases

New research from David Westaway, PhD, of the University of Alberta and Jiri Safar, PhD, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has uncovered a quality control mechanism in brain cells that may help keep deadly neurological diseases in check for months or years.

16 Jan 2014

Research: Creuztfeldt-Jakob disease might be transmitted by blood transfusion

Creuztfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a rare but fatal disease in humans. For the first time, the presence of infectivity[1] in the blood of patients affected by sporadic and the new variant of CJD was established by scientists from the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) and the French National Veterinary School (ENVT), in collaboration with European partners.

12 Dec 2013

Study reveals pathogenic factor that triggers prion and neurodegenerative diseases

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathy or prion disease is triggered by the conversion from cellular prion protein to pathogenic prion protein.

12 Dec 2013

Recombinant human prion protein stops propagation of prions, say researchers

Case Western Reserve University researchers today published findings that point to a promising discovery for the treatment and prevention of prion diseases, rare neurodegenerative disorders that are always fatal.

10 Oct 2013

Innovative platform improves diagnostics and detection of biomolecules

Separating target molecules in biological samples is a critical part of diagnosing and detecting diseases. Usually the target and probe molecules are mixed and then separated in batch processes that require multiple pipetting, tube washing and extraction steps that can affect accuracy.

18 Sep 2013

Professors receive 100,000 Euro from Hartwig Piepenbrock-DZNE for outstanding brain research

The prize is awarded by the Piepenbrock Group and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE). The award ceremony will be held in Berlin on September 24, 2013.

12 Sep 2013

Self-propagating aggregates key to Alzheimer's, other diseases

Two leading neurology researchers have proposed a theory that could unify scientists' thinking about several neurodegenerative diseases and suggest therapeutic strategies to combat them.

6 Sep 2013

Scientists identify specific type of receptor that may aid in treatment of AD, Parkinson’s disease

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found a way that corrupted, disease-causing proteins spread in the brain, potentially contributing to Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and other brain-damaging disorders.

26 Aug 2013

Researchers create mouse models to advance the study of unusual deadly diseases

By directly manipulating a portion of the prion protein-coding gene, Whitehead Institute researchers have created mouse models of two neurodegenerative diseases that are fatal in humans. The highly accurate reproduction of disease pathology seen with these models should advance the study of these unusual but deadly diseases.

20 Aug 2013

Prion proteins responsible for Mad cow disease, Creutzfeld-Jakob disease

Mad cow disease and its cousin Creutzfeld-Jakob disease cause fatal spongy changes in brain tissue. Today, we know that these diseases are caused by prions, proteins that are folded incorrectly. A team of German researchers have now been able to follow how the diseased proteins aggregate and "infect" healthy ones on the atomic scale. Their report appears in the journal Angewandte Chemie.

16 Aug 2013

Researchers contribute to key step in finding cure for prion-folding diseases in humans

The work of University of Alberta researchers and their teams has contributed to an important next step in finding a cure for deadly prion-folding diseases in humans and animals.

1 Aug 2013

Scientists take important step toward pharmacologic development of treatment for fatal brain disorders

A team of researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have identified a mechanism that can prevent the normal prion protein from changing its molecular shape into the abnormal form responsible for neurodegenerative diseases. This finding, published in the July 18 issue of Cell Reports, offers new hope in the battle against a foe that until now has always proved fatal.

19 Jul 2013

Key to treating neurodegenerative prion diseases may lie in ribosome, shows research

New research results from Uppsala University, Sweden, show that the key to treating neurodegenerative prion diseases such as mad cow disease and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease may lie in the ribosome, the protein synthesis machinery of the cell. The results were recently published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

2 Jul 2013

BioMed Central launches new journal Acta Neuropathologica Communications

Open access publisher BioMed Central is proud to announce the launch of Acta Neuropathologica Communications (ANC). ANC will publish work on pathology and mechanisms of neurological disease using structural, molecular and cellular techniques.

8 May 2013

Research findings could provide a way to treat onset, progression of Parkinson's disease

The earliest signs of Parkinson's disease can be deceptively mild. The first thing that movie star Michael J. Fox noticed was twitching of the little finger of his left hand.

23 Apr 2013