Prions

[Ian A. York]

In article <9504251530.AA29824 at mercury.med.pitt.edu> bap at MED.PITT.EDU (Bruce Phillips) writes:
>
>	In answer to a recent query, the article about prion-diseases bewing
>caused by a Spiroplasma bacterium was written by Frank O. Bastian and was
>published in the ASM News, vol 59 #5 in 1993.  Apparently, these bacteria

I'll have to take a look at that.

I recall hearing a talk by a scrapie researcher in which he mentioned that
he could boil the scrapie protein in SDS, run it on SDS-PAGE, cut out the
protein band, and injecting it into hamsters.  If I'm remembering this 
correctly, I find it hard to believe there's a bacterium involved.  

Ian


-- 
Ian York   (york at mbcrr.harvard.edu)
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney St., Boston MA 02115
Phone (617)-632-3921     Fax  (617)-632-2627