prion
Brain-destroying protein particle
A prion is an infectious agent consisting of misfolded protein rather than a virus or bacterium.
Prions cause fatal neurodegenerative diseases—mad cow disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, scrapie in sheep—by inducing normal proteins in the brain to adopt the same abnormal shape, creating a chain reaction of damage.
Unlike other pathogens, prions contain no DNA or RNA.
Prion disease from cannibalism
- scrapieOvine prion disease
- mad cowBrain-wasting livestock illness
- neurodegenerationProgressive loss of neurons
- incurableCannot be healed
untreatable · incubation · terminal · lethal · mortality · fatal · irreversible
Resembling a sponge's structure
- brain lesionDamaged area of neural tissue
- encephalopathyDisease impairing brain function
- atrophyWasting from disuse
- dementiaChronic cognitive impairment
ataxia · cognitive decline · neuropathology · histopathology
Able to spread disease
- transmissibleAble to spread between individuals
- contaminationIntroduction of impurities
- iatrogenicCaused by medical care
- cannibalismIntraspecies flesh consumption
surgical instruments · blood transfusion · corneal transplant · dura mater · growth hormone · incubation period · species barrier · strain
Structural form or arrangement
- aggregationCombined collection of items
- amyloidCross-beta protein aggregate
- fibrilTiny structural thread
- denaturationStructural breakdown of proteins
template · conversion · propagation · glycoprotein · membrane-bound · chaperone
Highest academic honor
- biosafetyProtection from biological hazards
- decontaminationRemoving dangerous substances
- autoclavePressurized steam sterilization chamber
- bioassayTest using living tissue
Tube-nosed ocean bird
- shearwaterTube-nosed pelagic bird
- albatrossLong-winged oceanic bird
- fulmarTube-nosed seabird species
- pelagicOf the open sea
kuru
Prion disease from cannibalism
- scrapieOvine prion disease
- mad cowBrain-wasting livestock illness
- neurodegenerationProgressive loss of neurons
incurable · untreatable · incubation · terminal · lethal · mortality · fatal · irreversible
spongiform
Resembling a sponge's structure
- brain lesionDamaged area of neural tissue
- encephalopathyDisease impairing brain function
- atrophyWasting from disuse
dementia · ataxia · cognitive decline · neuropathology · histopathology
infectious
Able to spread disease
- transmissibleAble to spread between individuals
- contaminationIntroduction of impurities
- iatrogenicCaused by medical care
cannibalism · surgical instruments · blood transfusion · corneal transplant · dura mater · growth hormone · incubation period · species barrier · strain · host
conformation
Structural form or arrangement
- aggregationCombined collection of items
- amyloidCross-beta protein aggregate
- fibrilTiny structural thread
denaturation · template · conversion · propagation · glycoprotein · membrane-bound · chaperone
Nobel Prize
Highest academic honor
- biosafetyProtection from biological hazards
- decontaminationRemoving dangerous substances
- autoclavePressurized steam sterilization chamber
petrel
Tube-nosed ocean bird
- shearwaterTube-nosed pelagic bird
- albatrossLong-winged oceanic bird
- fulmarTube-nosed seabird species
pelagic · New Zealand · subantarctic · nocturnal · colonial
- Pathogenspathogen, germ, germs, bacteria, bacterium
- Proteostasisdeubiquitinase, protease, degradation, parkin, CHOP
- Contaminantspollutants, pollutant, heavy metals, toxin, pesticides
- seabirdspenguin, penguins, pelican, pelicans, seagull
- microbiologybacteria, bacterium, microbe, microbes, microorganisms
- proteinsalbumin, collagen, casein, keratin, hemoglobin
- prion diseaseNeurodegeneration from misfolded proteins