The term «unconventional virus» refers to virus-like agents that differ from conventional viruses in significant respects–resistance to agents that inactivate normal viruses, for example. Certain rare and fatal neurological disorders, such as the Creutzfeldt-Jacob syndrome and the Gerstmann-Straussler syndrome, are clearly produced by virus-like infectious agents, but the nature of these agents is not understood. This volume brings together the latest information on one such disease: Scrapie, a disease occurring in sheep. It discusses the nature of this infectious agent and insights gained through new techniques in molecular genetics. The work as a whole focuses on the implications of animal data for research on human disorders, such as the possible connection between unconventional viruses and Alzheimer's Disease. The discussions represent the work of specialists from a broad spectrum of fields including virology, neuropathology, and molecular biology.

медицина / здравоохранение

нейропсихология

медицина

Novel Infectious Agents and the Central Nervous System

Growth Factors as Drugs for Neurological and Sensory Disorders

Generation and Effector Functions of Regulatory Lymphocytes

Non-Reproductive Actions of Sex Steroids

Transport and Trafficking in the Malaria-Infected Erythrocyte

Fatty Acid and Lipotoxicity in Obesity and Diabetes

Development of the Cerebral Cortex

The Nature and Origin of Amyloid Fibrils

Biology of IGF-1