From: "Randy H" 

Then maybe we need call it what it is: a slow-acting poison.

"Rich Gauszka"  wrote in message
news:3fedcf05{at}w3.nls.net...
> Good article on prions at
>
>
http://science-education.nih.gov/nihHTML/ose/snapshots/multimedia/ritn/prion
s/prions1.html
>
> Sometimes a scientific discovery shakes the confidence of scientists,
making
> them question whether they truly understand nature's "ground rules."
>
> That's exactly what prions have done to scientists' understanding of the
> ground rules for infectious diseases. Prions cause diseases, but they
aren't
> viruses or bacteria or fungi or parasites. They are simply proteins, and
> proteins were never thought to be infectious on their own. Organisms are
> infectious, proteins are not. Or, at least, they never used to be.
>
> "Robert Comer"  wrote in message
> news:3fedbe1c{at}w3.nls.net...
> > > I don't really understand the transmission. Mostly, cooking denatures
> > > protein, and stomach acids and enzymes digest it. By the time it
reaches
> > the
> > > jejunum its just a slurry of amino acids, which are absorbable. It
> > generally
> > > isn't possible to absorb whole protein molecules from a healthy gut.
> >
> > Good point.  It sounds like there has to be some trigger that gets
passed
> > along, doesn't it. Could it be a slightly different amino acid that is
the
> > cause, or do you think it more likely its something else like a virus?
> >
> > > I guess I'd better do some reading. It was noticeable to me that a
large
> > > percentage of the British vCJ patients were slaughtermen.
> >
> > That is pretty interesting...
> >
> > I certainly will be very interested in anything you can say on the
> subject!
> >
> > - Bob Comer
> >
> >
> > "Alan Cairns"  wrote in message
> > news:BC12F6FB.419A1%alancairns{at}dccnet.com...
> > > On 26/12/03 4:56 PM, in article 3fecd886$1{at}w3.nls.net,
"Robert Comer"
> > >  wrote:
> > >
> > > > I think it does survive coking as it's not a living thing per-se
that
> > can be
> > > > killed.  (It's just a misfolded protein)
> > >
> > > I don't really understand the transmission. Mostly, cooking denatures
> > > protein, and stomach acids and enzymes digest it. By the time it
reaches
> > the
> > > jejunum its just a slurry of amino acids, which are absorbable. It
> > generally
> > > isn't possible to absorb whole protein molecules from a healthy gut.
> > >
> > > I guess I'd better do some reading. It was noticeable to me that a
large
> > > percentage of the British vCJ patients were slaughtermen.
> > >
> > > Alan
> > >
> >
> >
>
>

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