Talk:Prion

Another point

I'm going to raise another point here. "A prion (/ˈpriːɒn/ ⓘ) is a misfolded protein that induces folding problems in normal variants of the same protein, leading to cellular death." Where is the evidence that it's a protein? Word number 6 in the quoted text. Where is the experiment that shows this? ~2026-35108-2 (talk) 23:36, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

Okay look. Last paragraph in the section Replication: "Researchers at Dartmouth College discovered that endogenous host cofactor molecules such as the phospholipid molecule (e.g. phosphatidylethanolamine) and polyanions (e.g. single stranded RNA molecules) are necessary to form PrPSc molecules with high levels of specific infectivity in vitro, whereas protein-only PrPSc molecules appear to lack significant levels of biological infectivity." So why are we stating that this is a protein in the introduction here? ~2026-35108-2 (talk) 19:29, 26 January 2026 (UTC)

It is an established fact that cofactors are necessary for transmission, including nucleic acid. So by what definition is this a protein? ~2026-36972-62 (talk) 03:44, 27 June 2026 (UTC)

Magic

The article claims that PrP^c can't be separated by centrifuge. Of course, the statement doesn't actually say what it means. You go, editors, nice job - if your job is to make the article as vague as possible. Separated from what? Sedimentation (i.e. centrifugation) segregates free particulates (including macromolecules) from fluid medium. It can fail if the particles aren't free to move, if the particles aren't sufficiently stable (to withstand the time, heat, or forces experienced) or if mixing (for example thermal convection currents in the medium) occurs. Other than those caveats, a ~205 aa polypeptide WILL settle under high-g centrifugation (in water). Full Stop. PrP^C CAN BE SEPARATED from solution (dispersion) to some extent. Other similarly dense materials will also separate, and there will always be some medium (i.e. water) present - the separation isn't quantitative. But perhaps the editor meant PrP^c can't be separated from PrP^Sc or from the other biomolecules typically present? Clearly, platelets ARE ROUTINELY separated by centrifugation, decisively contradicting the ridiculous assertion. It requires a belief in magic (or just a poor understanding of physical reality) to believe that in principle PrP isn't subject to the laws of physics. I make no claim whether or not centrifugation is a *practical* way to separate PrP from its medium. ~2026-92463-4 (talk) 01:59, 19 February 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for your suggestion. When you believe an article needs improvement, please feel free to change it. We encourage you to be bold in updating pages, because wikis like ours develop faster when everybody edits. Don't worry too much about making honest mistakes—they're likely to be found and corrected quickly. You can always preview your edits before you publish them or test them out in the sandbox. If you need additional help, check out our getting started page or ask the friendly folks at the Teahouse. Graham Beards (talk) 09:30, 19 February 2026 (UTC)

SSPE

I think there is a similarity between prion diseases and subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) (and any similar neurodegenerativ diseases caused by viruses). Is there any research about relationships between prions and SSPE? I imagine that SSPE may be due to a measles virus, or portion thereof, that turns into a prion-like thing. Solomonfromfinland (talk) 05:25, 12 April 2026 (UTC)

My edit has been reverted

My edit has been reverted because I did not provide a reliable source. How am I to provide a reliable source that a viewpoint is merely a hypothesis? Again, burden of proof lies with the prion believers. ~2026-36972-62 (talk) 03:53, 27 June 2026 (UTC)