SGD Paper 
Derdowski A, et al. (2010) A size threshold limits prion transmission and establishes phenotypic diversity. Science 330(6004):680-3
Abstract: According to the prion hypothesis, atypical phenotypes arise when a prion protein adopts an alternative conformation and persist when that form assembles into self-replicating aggregates. Amyloid formation in vitro provides a model for this protein-misfolding pathway, but the mechanism by which this process interacts with the cellular environment to produce transmissible phenotypes is poorly understood. Using the yeast prion Sup35/[PSI(+)], we found that protein conformation determined the size distribution of aggregates through its interactions with a molecular chaperone. Shifts in this range created variations in aggregate abundance among cells because of a size threshold for transmission, and this heterogeneity, along with aggregate growth and fragmentation, induced age-dependent fluctuations in phenotype. Thus, prion conformations may specify phenotypes as population averages in a dynamic system.
| Status: Published | Type: Journal Article | Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural | Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S. | PubMed ID: 21030659 |
Topics addressed in this paper
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| Topics | Genes linked to topics |
|---|---|
| SUP35 | |
| Function/Process |  |
| Mutants/Phenotypes | |
| Primary Literature | |
| Protein-protein Interactions | |
| Strains/Constructs | |
