A viral protein exhibits biochemical properties similar to those of prions

Researchers from IVPC have recently discovered that a virus affecting ruminants in Africa can form amyloid-like fibrils in the brain

Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, involve the accumulation of proteins in the brain, which cause the formation of amyloid fibrils. Up until now, only prion diseases – also associated to amyloid plaques – were thought to be infectious. The University Heidelberg and the Pasteur Institute, in a tight collaboration with IPVC, have recently discovered that Rift Valley fever virus is also capable of forming amyloid-like fibrils in the brain. Their results were published on July 1st 2020 in Nature Communications

Modification date : 26 April 2023 | Publication date : 04 September 2020 | Redactor : Lozach PY