Open AccessUnusual resistance to ionizing radiation of the viruses of kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and scrapie.
Author(s) -
Clarence J. Gibbs,
D. Carleton Gajdusek,
R Latarjet
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.75.12.6268
Subject(s) - kuru , scrapie , virology , slow virus , biology , virus , ionizing radiation , titer , disease , viral disease , medicine , pathology , prion protein , irradiation , physics , nuclear physics
The titers of several preparations of kuru. Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease, and scrapie viruses were reduced by only 1/10th or less by high doses of gamma radiation of 50 kGy and by only 1/10th-1/1000th or less for 200 kGy. This unusual radiation resistance of the two human viruses further links them with the scrapie virus and suggests that the genetic information of all three viruses is considerably smaller than that of any other known viruses of mammals.