Infectious agents with no genome
If the reader does not believe that viroids and satellites are distinctive, then surely prions, infectious agents composed only of protein, must impress.
The question of whether infectious agents exist without genomes arose with the discovery and characterization of infectious agents associated with a group of diseases called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). These diseases are rare, but always fatal, neurodegenerative disorders that afflict humans and other mammals. They are characterized by long incubation periods, spongiform changes in the brain associated with loss of neurons, and the absence of host re...
Source: virology blog - January 30, 2015 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Information bovine spongiform encephalopathy cervid wasting disease Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease Fatal familial insomnia mad cow disease prion scrapie Stanley Prusiner transmissible spongiform encephalopathy TSE viral Source Type: blogs
What Rare Diseases Teach Us About the Cellular Basis of Aging
In June, 2014, my book, entitled Rare Diseases and Orphan Drugs: Keys to Understanding and Treating the Common Diseases was published by Elsevier. The book builds the argument that our best chance of curing the common diseases will come from studying and curing the rare diseases. Chapter 4 explains that much what we think we know about the aging process comes from studying rare diseases of premature aging, such as Hutchinson–Gilford progeria syndrome, Bloom syndrome, Werner syndrome, Cockayne syndrome, dyskeratosis congenita, Fanconi anemia, Wolfram syndrome, and xeroderma pigmentosum. Lessons learned from these rare...
Source: Specified Life - July 4, 2014 Category: Pathologists Tags: ageing aging biology of aging cancer cause of aging cell renewal common disease genetic disease orphan disease orphan drugs rare disease Source Type: blogs
