Intranuclear inclusions in a case of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease: an ultrastructural study

Two types of intranuclear inclusions were described in a brain biopsy from a patient with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The first type of intranculear inclusion was papova virus-like and was observed within 20% of the nuclei of all astrocytes and neurons examined. The particles measured 32 nm in diameter and consisted of a dense core surrounded by a multi-layered shell. The second type of intranuclear inculsion was a granulo-fibrillar nuclear body found within the nuclei of astrocytes and neurons. The possible significance of these inculsions to the etiology of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is discussed.