Understanding Prion Disease: Symptoms, Causes, and Treatment
Prion disease is a rare family of diseases that affect both humans and animals. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, it is caused by an abnormal protein called prion that damages the brain and nervous system. Prion diseases are usually progressive and rapidly fatal. In this article, we’ll delve deeper into prion disease, examining symptoms, causes, and treatment, as well as sharing some examples.
Symptoms of Prion Disease
Prion disease symptoms vary depending on the type of prion disease that a person has. Some of the common symptoms include:
1. Changes in behavior, memory, and personality
2. Dementia
3. Difficulty speaking and swallowing
4. Weakness or imbalance
5. Ataxia (loss of coordination)
6. Rapidly progressive cognitive impairment
7. Sleep disturbances
8. Confusion
Causes of Prion Disease
Prion disease is believed to be caused by an abnormal protein that attacks the brain. Prion proteins are naturally found in the body, but it’s still not clear how they form and why they become abnormal.
It’s also not clear how prion diseases are transmitted from one person to another. However, it’s known that they can spread through exposure to contaminated tissue, such as brain, spinal cord, and nervous system tissue. Prion diseases can also be inherited genetically.
Treatment of Prion Disease
Unfortunately, there is no known cure for prion disease, and treatment only focuses on slowing down the progression of the disease and improving the patient’s quality of life. Supportive care is usually the most common form of treatment given to prion disease patients. This includes managing symptoms such as seizures, improving nutrition, and providing physical therapy.
There are also some experimental treatments that are being studied, such as drugs that target prion proteins and antibodies that block prion proteins from binding to healthy cells.
Examples of Prion Disease
There are several types of prion disease, including:
1. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)
2. Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD)
3. Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker (GSS) disease
4. Fatal Familial Insomnia
5. Kuru
One example of the spread of prion disease occurred in Papua New Guinea in the 1950s. The Fore people were practicing cannibalism and a result, many of them contracted Kuru. Once the Fore people were convinced of the relationship between eating human flesh and contracting Kuru, they stopped the practice and the disease stopped spreading.
Conclusion
Prion disease is a rare and deadly group of diseases that attack both humans and animals. While there is no known cure for prion disease, researchers continue to investigate ways to slow down the progression of the disease. Awareness of the disease is key to preventing its spread, and avoiding exposure to contaminated tissue is essential. People can be vigilant in preventing the spread of these diseases by raising awareness about them and by avoiding risky behaviors that encourage the spread of cannibalism.
