Causative agents of incurable prion diseases may be hiding in meat

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The doctor said in an interview that with the development of prion diseases, the central nervous system begins to produce atypical proteins – amyloids. These protein compounds penetrate all cells, resulting in impaired functioning of the CNS.

“Prions are proteins that differ from “normal” human proteins not in their amino acid composition, but in their altered form,” the specialist said.

According to the doctor, the penetration of prions into the body can occur when it is infected or their activity can be determined by heredity. In the body, prions cause pathological changes in other proteins, which leads to progressive disorders in the central nervous system. Such disorders affect many things, from human behavior to the work of its internal organs. Bottom diseases are incurable, and today they still largely remain a mystery to science.

The doctor added that prions, which are the causative agents of these diseases, can enter the human body together with animal components – for example, with medicines that may contain them, or with meat.

“Animals also get sick with prion diseases and die from them. Products such as bone meal are made from animals, which are fed to other animals, and they also become infected. Since the disease develops very slowly, it can go unnoticed, the animal can be killed, and the products can be sent for consumption,” the doctor explained.

The doctor emphasized that prion diseases are not transmitted from person to person.