PrPC vs. PrPSc: Understanding the Role of Prions in Disease
Prions are a type of infectious agent that is responsible for a group of fatal neurodegenerative diseases, including kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), and Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker syndrome (GSS). Unlike other infectious agents, such as bacteria and viruses, prions do not contain any nucleic acid material. Instead, they are composed of a single protein called the prion protein, or PrP. There are two main forms of PrP: PrPC and PrPSc. PrPC is the normal cellular form of the protein, and it is found in all cells of the body....