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Viroids&Prions

Viroids are small circular RNA molecules found in plants that replicate without encoding any proteins. They range from 246 to 375 nucleotides in length and have secondary structures involving base-paired regions and loops. Viroids are classified into two families based on sequence and whether they undergo self-cleavage. They replicate via a rolling circle mechanism using host RNA polymerase II and can infect plants, causing diseases with virus-like symptoms such as wilting, stunting and leaf distortions. Prions are infectious proteins that cause rare neurodegenerative diseases in humans and other animals like Kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and mad cow disease. Prion diseases have been transmitted through ritualistic cannibalism and consumption of contaminated beef

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54 views

Viroids&Prions

Viroids are small circular RNA molecules found in plants that replicate without encoding any proteins. They range from 246 to 375 nucleotides in length and have secondary structures involving base-paired regions and loops. Viroids are classified into two families based on sequence and whether they undergo self-cleavage. They replicate via a rolling circle mechanism using host RNA polymerase II and can infect plants, causing diseases with virus-like symptoms such as wilting, stunting and leaf distortions. Prions are infectious proteins that cause rare neurodegenerative diseases in humans and other animals like Kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and mad cow disease. Prion diseases have been transmitted through ritualistic cannibalism and consumption of contaminated beef

Uploaded by

AyioKun
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© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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PROKARYOTIC BIOLOGY

VIROIDS & PRIONS


I. VIROIDS
A. STRUCTURE & SEQUENCE
1. NUCLEOTIDE SEQUENCE -- 246N (CCCVd) TO 375N (CEVd)
a. NUMBERING SYSTEM
b. ROD SHAPE (20:1 AXIAL RATIO)
c. 27 DISTINCT VIROIDS
(1) >100 NUCLEOTIDE SEQUENCES DETERMINED
(2) ISOLATE VARIATION
2. SECONDARY STRUCTURE
a. CIRCULAR <=====> LINEAR
b. BASE-PAIRED REGIONS AND LOOPS
c. STRUCTURAL TRANSITIONS WITH DENATURATION
B. CLASSIFICATION -- BASED ON SEQUENCE AND SELF-CLEAVAGE
1. POSPIVIROIDAE - PSTVd FAMILY (24 MEMBERS)
a. POSPIVIROID - PSTVd GROUP (8 MEMBERS)
b. COCADVIROID - CCCVd GROUP (4 MEMBBERS)
c. APSCAVIROID - ASSVd GROUP (8 MEMBERS)
d. COLEVIROID - CbVd-1 (3 MEMBER)
e. HOSTUVIROID – HSVd (1 MEMBER)
2. AVSUNVIROIDAE - ASBVd FAMILY (3 MEMBERS)
a. AVSUNVIROID - ASBVd (SELF-CLEAVAGE)
b. PELAMOVIROID - PLMVd AND CChMVd
C. REPLICATION
1. NO CODING SEQUENCES -- NO REPLICASE
2 + STRANDS ---> - STRANDS ---> + STRANDS
3. RNAP II THE PROBABLE ENZYME
D. PATHOGENESIS
1. INFECTIVITY OF CLONES
2. DISEASE
a. LIKE VIRUS INFECTIONS
1. WILTS, STUNTING, LEAF DISTORTIONS, NECROSIS
2. MANY ARE SYMPTOMLESS -- LATENT VIROIDS
b. PROTEIN CHANGES (LITTLE NA CHANGES)
c. CELL TO CELL MOVEMENT IS RAPID
d. SEED, POLLEN & AGRICULTURAL TRANSMISSION
II. PRIONS -- KURU, AN UNUSUAL HUMAN DISEASE
A EPIDEMIC IN PAPUA, NEW GUINEA 1920-1970
B. WOMEN AND CHILDREN AFFECTED
C. LOSS OF MOTOR SKILLS AND DEMENTIA
D. DEATH USUALLY WITHIN ONE YEAR
E. DISEASE STUDIED BY CARLETON GAJDUSEK
1. TRANSMITTED BY RITUALISTIC CANNIBALISM - MOURNING
2. PROPERTIES LIKE OTHER RARE HUMAN DISEASES, EG. CJD
3. RECENTLY IN ENGLAND MAD COW DISEASE
F. RECENT WORK ON SCRAPIE, CJD AND KURU--PRIONS
1. RAPID ASSAY WITH HAMSTERS
2. THE "PARTICLE" IS A PROTEIN: NO NUCLEIC ACID
3. A DNA PROBE WAS MADE: AA SEQUENCE ---> NUC SEQUENCE
4. THE HAMSTER GENE WAS ISOLATED USING THE PROBE
5. THE PRION GENE WAS SEQUENCED
6. THE "INFECTIOUS PARTICLE" IS A HOST PROTEIN
7. HETERODIMER CAUSES NORMAL PROTEIN TRANFORMATION
G. IS THERE A CURE FOR THIS RARE DISEASE ?
H. BEEF, GREAT BRITAIN, AND BSE - MAD COW DISEASE

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