Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Transmissible encephalopathy agents: virulence, geography and clockwork.

Laura Manuelidis1

  • 1Yale University, Section of Neuropathology, Surgery, New Haven, CT, USA. laura.manuelidis@yale.edu

Virulence
|December 24, 2010
PubMed
Summary

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are caused by infectious agents with unique virulence. These agents exhibit virus-like biology, challenging the prion hypothesis and highlighting distinct regional strains.

Related Concept Videos

Subviral Agents01:29

Subviral Agents

383
Subviral agents are infectious entities that resemble viruses but lack one or more viral components, such as a capsid or essential replication machinery. These agents include viroids, prions, and satellites, each possessing distinct structural and functional characteristics that influence their mode of infection and replication.Viroids are the simplest subviral agents, consisting of circular, single-stranded RNA molecules without a protein coat. They exclusively infect plants, relying entirely...
383
Viral Replication: Lytic Cycle01:20

Viral Replication: Lytic Cycle

991
Bacteriophages, or phages, are viruses that specifically infect bacteria. Among them, T-even bacteriophages, such as T4, exhibit a well-characterized lytic replication cycle in Escherichia coli (E. coli). This process ensures the rapid proliferation of the virus while ultimately leading to the destruction of the bacterial host.Attachment and DNA InjectionThe infection process begins with the recognition and binding of the T4 phage to the E. coli cell surface. Tail fibers of the phage...
991

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Proliferative arrest induces neuronal differentiation and innate immune responses in normal and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease agent (CJ) infected rat septal neurons.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2024
Same author

Reduced Expression of Prion Protein With Increased Interferon-β Fail to Limit Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Agent Replication in Differentiating Neuronal Cells.

Frontiers in physiology·2022
Same author

Prokaryotic SPHINX replication sequences are conserved in mammalian brain and participate in neurodegeneration.

Journal of cellular biochemistry·2019
Same author

Prokaryotic SPHINX 1.8 REP protein is tissue-specific and expressed in human germline cells.

Journal of cellular biochemistry·2018
Same author

A prokaryotic viral sequence is expressed and conserved in mammalian brain.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2017
Same author

Virulence profile: Laura Manuelidis.

Virulence·2016

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are fatal neurodegenerative diseases.
  • TSEs are caused by infectious agents lacking host-encoded genetic material.
  • Agent virulence is characterized by variable latency, tissue pathology, and broad species tropism.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the unique biological features of TSE agents.
  • To challenge the prion hypothesis with evidence of cross-species transmission.
  • To define virulence factors distinguishing endemic and emerging TSE strains.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of recent transmissions of human TSE agents to mice and cell cultures.
  • Comparative study of agent-specific virulence characteristics.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Systematic definition of virulence features based on virus-like biology.

    • Main Results:

    • Observed cross-species infections contradict predictions of the prion hypothesis.
    • Identified unique TSE agent clades prevalent in specific geographic regions.
    • Demonstrated virus-like properties including epidemic spread, mutation, and superinfection.

    Conclusions:

    • TSE agents possess distinct biological characteristics beyond the prion concept.
    • Geographic clustering suggests unique agent clades with specific virulence profiles.
    • Understanding these virulence features is crucial for distinguishing endemic from emerging strains.