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How independent are TSE agents from their hosts?

Robert A Somerville¹

¹Neurobiology Division; The Roslin Institute and R(D)SVS; University of Edinburgh; Easter Bush, Scotland UK.

|June 22, 2013

Summary

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) agents, or prions, generally show genetic independence from the host. Experiments indicate PrP glycosylation does not directly encode prion properties, though sporadic TSEs pose challenges.

Keywords:

TSE agents genetic information glycosylation infectious disease mutability prion hypothesis

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Molecular Biology
Infectious Diseases

Background:

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are neurodegenerative diseases linked to prions.
A key question is whether TSE agents possess host-independent genomes or are derived from host components.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the role of host prion protein (PrP) glycosylation in TSE strain characteristics.
To determine if altering PrP glycosylation affects the genetic properties of TSE agents.

Main Methods:

Wild-type mice were infected with TSE strains passaged through transgenic mice lacking N-linked glycans on PrP.
Three distinct TSE strains were used to assess the impact of altered glycosylation environments.

Main Results:

One of the three TSE strains exhibited altered characteristics after passage in mice with modified PrP glycosylation.
The changes observed were attributed to the selection of mutant TSE strains within the novel replicative environment.
Two other TSE strains did not show significant changes in their characteristics.

Conclusions:

Established TSE properties generally support the genetic independence of TSE agents from the host.
The primary structure of PrP does not appear to directly determine TSE agent properties.
Sporadic TSEs present a challenge to the concept of complete host-independent prion replication.
Further research into RNA expression and ribosomal activity may clarify TSE agent interactions with host machinery.