prion

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(PhysOrg. com) -- In the rogues 'gallery of microscopic infectious agents, the prion is the toughest hombre in town.

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Definitions (3)

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  1. noun A microscopic protein particle similar to a virus but lacking nucleic acid, thought to be the infectious agent responsible for scrapie and certain other degenerative diseases of the nervous system.

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Examples (50)

  • Sometimes, like the prion proteins that cause BSE, they not only stick around but multiply, reproducing themselves by means of a process far simpler than DNA/RNA coding. —  Asimov'sSF,March2008
  • It is now accepted that a conformational change of the cellular prion protein (PrP (C)) generates the prion, the infectious agent responsible for lethal neurodegenerative disorders, named transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, or prion diseases. —  CiteULike: Everyone's library
  • The mechanisms of prion-associated neurodegeneration are still obscure, as is the cell role of PrP (C), although increasing evidence attributes to PrP (C) important functions in cell survival. —  CiteULike: Everyone's library
  • Scientists found the infectious agent was a prion, a misfolded version of the PrP protein found clumped together in brain cells. —  Science Blog - Science news straight from the source
  • The bioinformatic scan located about 200 candidate prion-coding sequences in the yeast genome. —  Science Blog - Science news straight from the source
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Etymologies (1)

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  1. pr(oteinaceous) + i(nfectious) + -on1.
 

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