| You may be wondering what a prion is and
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| | bovine spongiform encephalopathy in
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| why you should care. Well, your ears
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| | cattle (also known as mad cow
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| might perk up a lot if you hear the words
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| | disease).What is not known is if there is
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| - 'Mad Cow Disease'. That disease is
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| | a connection to prion disease and
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| caused by a transmissible prion.Prion
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| | Alzheimer's disease. We have recognized
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| related diseases have been recognized for
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| | several genetic mutations that can cause
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| years. However, until recently we did not
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| | Alzheimer's disease and form prions in
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| realize what caused them.What we did know
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| | the body of the person with the mutation.
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| about them is that they caused dementia.
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| | However, this does not account for the
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| People gradually lost their ability to
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| | total number of those with Alzheimer's
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| reason and remember things. We also
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| | disease.One piece of evidence that is
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| noticed that there were typical changes
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| | suspicious. It is known that people who
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| in the brain when looked at during
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| | habitually eat meat more than four times
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| autopsy.Prions became famous when Kuru
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| | a week have three times as much chance of
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| was found among the Fore people of New
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| | getting Alzheimer's disease than
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| Guinea. In this disease, people would get
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| | vegetarians. However, at least some of
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| unsteady gait, tremors, and slurred
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| | this statistic could be related to
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| speech. The interesting thing was that
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| | increasing arteriosclerosis (hardening of
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| only women and children seemed to get the
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| | the arteries) in those that eat meat.If
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| disease.It was finally noticed that when
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| | there is a prion that causes Alzheimer's
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| a person died, his family would eat him
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| | disease that you can get from eating
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| as a way to honor the dead. But only the
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| | meat, why can't you easily prove or
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| women and children participated in this
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| | disprove it? Well, here is the problem.
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| practice. Scientists found that by
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| | The currently know prions cause disease
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| stopping this practice, the incidence of
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| | fast enough that you can put the prions
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| the disease suddenly plummeted.Further
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| | into lab animals like white mice and they
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| research in Kuru found that the cause was
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| | get the disease. However, have you ever
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| a protein - not a bacteria or virus.
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| | seen a mouse live as long as someone who
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| Furthermore, there was no way to destroy
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| | has Alzheimer's disease? Of course not.We
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| this protein by filtering or cooking.
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| | do know that prions come in strains that
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| Proteins are formed as a long molecule
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| | vary widely in the amount of time that it
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| that then folds over and over. The shape
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| | takes to cause the disease. So, here is
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| of the folded molecule determines how it
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| | the big question. What if there were a
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| functions.It also determines what enzymes
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| | prion that caused disease in humans, but
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| in the body are needed to break it down
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| | it took longer to cause problems than the
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| when it is no longer needed. The prion
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| | lifespan of the animal that it came from?
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| works by causing a protein in the brain
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| | For instance, if cows live 10 years but
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| into the wrong shape. Therefore it does
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| | it takes 50 years for the disease to show
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| not work and the brain makes more and
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| | up, you would never - ever see the
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| more of the chemical - trying to make
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| | disease in cows even if they carried the
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| enough of the protein to fill the need of
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| | disease. The same goes for chickens,
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| the body.The real devastation of the
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| | sheep and pigs. You see the problem?At
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| disease though is that the resulting
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| | this point, we do know that one fact -
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| misshapen chemical does not have enzymes
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| | that you get only 1/3 as much dementia if
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| in the body that can break it down! So
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| | you are a vegetarian. Until more is known
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| the protein builds up in large amounts
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| | about what is really in fact safe to eat,
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| that become toxic to brain cells and
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| | vegetarians have a leg up on carnivores
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| finally cause them to die.Once scientists
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| | on this issue.Dr. Ron is an Emergency
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| realized the cause and effect of this
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| | Room physician with over twenty years
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| prion, several other known diseases were
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| | experience in the health care field. He
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| found that fit this pattern. These
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| | often treats people for problems with
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| included scrapie (found in sheep),
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| | their weight. Come to
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| chronic wasting disease (found in deer
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| | Balanced Diet
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| and elk), Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and
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| | Health now for more great resources.
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| fatal familial insomnia in humans, and
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