NIAID Scientists Assess Transmission Risk of Familial Human Prion Diseases to Mice
Published:15 Mar.2018 Source:NIH
Scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, exposed research mice to brain samples from three people who died from a familial prion disease, and they found two of the mutations, Y226X and G131V, which had previously been preserved in formaldehyde for three days and dried on glass specimen slides for several years, still infected four of eight mice.
The finding illustrates the hardiness of prion infectivity and the potential risks associated with prion transmission, potentially through surgery, blood transfusion or tissue donation. Samples for the other two mutations studied were taken from frozen brain tissue that was thawed.