Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification

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Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification ( PMCA ) is a biochemical technique used to duplicate misfolded proteins ( prions ) and is used as a test for encephalopathies such as BSE .

This technique involves incubating a small number of misfolded proteins with a large number of correctly folded proteins , which leads to conversions. The growing agglomerates of misfolded protein are then split by ultrasound treatment. In this way, new smaller agglomerates are created, which in turn can lead to a number of new conversions. By repeating this step several times, there is a step-by-step conversion of correctly folded to incorrectly folded proteins and thus a duplication (amplification) of the same.

literature

  • Paula Saá, Joaquín Castilla, Claudio Soto: Ultra-efficient replication of infectious prions by automated protein misfolding cyclic amplification . In: The Journal of Biological Chemistry . tape 281 , 2006, p. 35245-35252 , doi : 10.1074 / jbc.M603964200 , PMID 16982620 (English).