Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, prion peptide

Growth hormone is a 191-amino-acid peptide with two sulfhydryl bridges. Its structure closely resembles that of prolactin. In the past, medicinal GH was isolated from the pituitaries of human cadavers. However, this form of GH was found to be contaminated with prions that could cause Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. For this reason, it is no longer used. Somatropin, the recombinant form of GH, has a 191-amino acid sequence that is identical with the predominant native form of human GH. 

One such application of RSEs, or their constituent bond dissociation energies, is in the study of radical-mediated degradation mechanisms. For example, based on an examination of the relevant C-H and S-H bond dissociation energies in model peptides. Rank et al. postulated a mechanism for generating and propagating oxidative damage via a Met residue of the Ap peptide of Alzheimer s disease or the prion peptide of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. In a similar manner, Li et al. used C-H BDE calculations to identify the most vulnerable sites for radical-mediated damage in... 

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