Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Pastimes : Don't Ask Rambi -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lady Lurksalot who wrote (10081)	4/20/1998 8:04:00 PM
From: Jacques Chitte	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 71178

I'll have to do a quickie search on the current state of affairs re prions. Absent a better hypothesis (and a kuru virus is, for now,in the same league as that second AIDS pathogen making the rounds a few years ago - a great way to make a virologist spray beer) there's a central nervous system protein called PrP which goes bad. Seeds its own badness, so a contaminated spot grows. Like ice crystals in supercooled water. As far as I know, that's still the leading hypothesis. I'd hazard that the entry in the Merck Manual was influenced by an editor's disdain of abiotic pathogenesis. It's not a very elegant theory - so - we just haven't found the virus yet! :-) That saxophonist must have had marvelous collateral circulation.