|
Current Events Help understand the world by talking about things happening in it |
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
10-10-2013, 10:23 AM | #1 |
Lecturer
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 796
|
Another FIRST!
First time EVER, they've identified a chemical that protects mice from the brain damaging effects of a prion.
Prions are like mini-bits of protein that cause our healthy proteins, to mis-fold while they are assembling themselves into a 3D shape. (Proteins only work when they have the right shape. Think of a key that fits a lock.) Misfolding is the hallmark of diseases like CJD and Mad Cow Disease, Alzheimers, and Huntingtons (which is genetic we know). For the first time, mice brains were completely protected from the introduction of a fatal brain damaging prion. It's a long way from mice to man, and they don't know WHY or HOW this works in detail yet, but this IS a big discovery, and being hailed as a key to understanding how to stop these diseases. Currently, each of these diseases is 100% fatal. |
Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests) | |
|
|