In article <5l8mmd$ebi at news.whidbey.com>, bernie at whidbey.not writes:
>>...alive?
>>Or does this depend on how you define life?
A prion is a protein. I don't know of any single proteins that are by any
definition, alive.
It is an infectious agent that modifies a normal form of protein to an
abnormal form. A normal protein is similar to its self. The abnormal
form accumulates in a cell causing the cell's death. It is a new type of
biological toxin. The replication of the prion is a new form of heredity
beyond the known DNA and RNA directed DNA heredity.
Davin C. Enigl, (Sole Proprietorship) MEAS
President-Microbiologist
Microbiology Consulting, Hazard Analysis and
Critical Control Points (HACCP), CGMP, and Validations
for the Food, Cosmetic, Nutritional Supplement, and Pharmaceutical
Industry
enigl at aol.comhttp://members.aol.com/enigl/index.html
May 13, 1997
5:17 pm
