Infectious proteins called prions are responsible for the devastating transmissible spongioform encephalopathy Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Prions are misfolded versions of proteins that replicate by converting their normal cellular counterparts into new prions and may play an important role in numerous other conditions, including Alzheimer and Parkinson's disease.
Highlights include:
- Structural biology of PrP prions
- Genetics of APP in Alzheimer's disease
- Challenges of therapeutics for prion diseases and blood-brain barrier