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Updated: Aug 6, 2026

Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification of Prions
Published on: November 7, 2012
Synthetic prions
M Eiden1, A Buschmann, L Kupfer
1Institute for Novel and Emerging Infectious Diseases (INEID) at the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Boddenblick 5a, 17493 Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany.
Abstract:
The prion theory postulates that prions are novel infectious agents that are composed largely, if not entirely, of abnormally folded host-encoded prion proteins. However, the existence of different prion strains is enigma, if these novel infectious agents lack a genetic element, such as a nucleic acid. The best proof for this 'protein-only' concept would be the in vitro generation of prions from synthetic sources. Indeed, a substantial body of evidence has meanwhile been accumulated in favour of this postulate. This mini review recapitulates all relevant studies and experimental data on the generation of synthetic prions.
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