Presence of mitochondrial D-loop DNA in scrapie-infected brain preparations enriched for the prion protein.
The prion preparation has, in recent years, been the focal point of scrapie research. The inability to identify agent-specific nucleic acids in this sample has led to the formulation of the infectious protein or prion hypothesis. In this study, we analyzed three different prion protein-enriched preparations and found all to contain significant amounts of mitochondrial nucleic acid. Southern blot analyses indicated that they are enriched for a specific component of the mitochondrial genome, the single-stranded displacement loop fragment. Our results suggest that if mitochondrial nucleic acids are involved in scrapie infection, it is the displacement loop fragment that is specifically responsible.
Aiken
J M
JM
Department of Veterinary Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison 53706.
Williamson
J L
JL
Borchardt
L M
LM
Marsh
R F
RF
D000818:Animals; D001923:Brain Chemistry; D002458:Cell Fractionation / Q000379:methods; D006224:Cricetinae; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000032:analysis*; D018620:PrPSc Proteins; D012045:Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D012608:Scrapie / Q000635:transmission*; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000302:isolation & purification*
D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D018620:PrPSc Proteins; D014764:Viral Proteins