Fatal Protein: The Story of CJD, BSE and Other Prion Diseases Book

This book presents a clear and authoritative survey of the prion diseases, designed mainly for the non-specialist. It deals with the history of scrapie in sheep, the spread of kuru through cannibalism in Papua New Guinea, and the BSE epidemic in Britain--"mad cow disease"--which claimed over 170,000 cattle and threatened the rest of Europe. The authors present a detailed description of the human prion diseases, and examine the evidence that the new variant of the Creutzfeld-Jakob disease results from eating infected by BSE. At the heart of this book lies a discussion of the still controversial idea that the infectious agent in prion diseases is a normal brain protein which takes on abnormal, mutant shape. This is the so-called "prion theory". The potential of similar processes underlying more common diseases is also investigated. Ridley and Baker--both researchers with over two decades of experience in the field--look at other theories of prion diseases as well, even though their primary focus remains the prion theory. Every aspect of prion diseases is covered within the wide-ranging scope of Fatal Protein, including molecular genetics, epidemiology, clinical aspects, laboratory research, and field studies. This is the first book to combine scientific accuracy and authority with a lively, exceptionally clear style of writing, and it will be welcomed by anyone with a professional or personal interest in this intriguing subject.Read More