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Prion biology: the quest for the test

Nature Methods volume 4, pages 614–616 (2007)Cite this article

The adaptation of the protein misfolding cyclic amplification assay (PMCA) to use recombinant hamster prion protein (PrP) as a substrate shows promise for both basic research applications and clinical diagnostic assays.

Prions, the elusive infectious particles responsible for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans as well as various conditions in wild and captive animals), have been responsible for some of the most tragic disasters in the history of medicine1. For decades, biological materials derived from subclinically infected organisms have transferred the infection to others. Thus, the development of sensitive, fast and reliable assays represents an urgent and unmet medical need. In this issue of Nature Methods, Atarashi and colleagues from the Caughey laboratory introduce a technique that may be an interesting step toward that goal and may also help to understand the mechanisms of prion replication2.

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Figure 1: Prion replication and PMCA.

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  1. Adriano Aguzzi is at the Institute of Neuropathology, Zürich, CH-8091, Switzerland

    Adriano Aguzzi

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  1. Adriano Aguzzi
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Aguzzi, A. Prion biology: the quest for the test. Nat Methods 4, 614–616 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth0807-614

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