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Understanding the diversity of prions

Nature Cell Biology volume 6, pages 290–292 (2004)Cite this article

The protein-only hypothesis proposes that prions propagate by imparting specific folds onto cellular proteins. This hypothesis has met with resistance, partly because of the observation that many phenotypically distinct prion 'strains' are known to exist in yeast and mammals. Recent work on yeast prions may help reconcile the occurrence of prion strains with the prion hypothesis.

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Figure 1: Hypothetical models for prion-encoded strain phenotypes.

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  1. the Universitäts Spital Zürich, Institut für Neuropathologie, Schmelzbergstr. 12, Zürich, CH-8091, Switzerland

    Adriano Aguzzi

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  1. Adriano Aguzzi
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Aguzzi, A. Understanding the diversity of prions. Nat Cell Biol 6, 290–292 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncb0404-290

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