by Vincent Racaniello — Bacteria do not develop transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, but they have been found to produce prions – proteins that can adopt alternative conformations with different functions...
by Elio — How a proteins folds into a particular shape is about as central a concern as there is in our postgenomic world. Protein molecules bend, curl up, writhe, and, generally undergo big time changes in shape and form, plus they can make strong connections between segments along their length and with other molecules…
by Merry Youle — Prions are proteins of ill repute, as they keep company with "mad cow disease," Alzheimer's, and other neurodegenerative maladies. But prions are not foreign pathogens; they are alternative states of normal cellular proteins. Proteins behaving as prions typically assume a characteristic ß‑sheet secondary structure and aggregate to form exceptionally stable fibers called amyloids. Small amyloid aggregates can...
