Physiological and Environmental Regulation of Amyloid and Prion Formation

Physiological and Environmental Regulation of Amyloid and Prion Formation

Prions are self-perpetuating protein isoforms that are transmitted via extracellular infection in mammals or inherited via the cytoplasm in lower eukaryotes such as yeast and other fungi. The mammalian prion protein (PrP), in its prion form, causes fatal transmissible encephalopathies such as “mad cow disease”. About 30 diseases in humans, including such neurodegenerative disorders as Alzheimer, Parkinson and Huntington diseases are also associated with amyloids or amyloid-like depositions. Like prions some of these amyloids can also be transmitted between cells. Many amyloid diseases are fatal and incurable.