Chapter 16, Problem 10WIO

Summary Introduction

To explain:

Why might eating other members of same species make prion disease more likely to occur and what can be inferred from the fact that some humans have acquired prions after eating beef from the prion-infected cow.

Concept introduction:

Prions are a small infectious agent that composed only of protein molecules. They are similar to viruses, but they lack nucleic acid. A prion protein is normal membrane protein that exists in many three dimensional forms and cause disease.