Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance

Prions are proteins that can stably fold into alternative structures that frequently alter their activities. They can self-template their alternate structures and are inherited across cell divisions and generations. While they have been studied for more than four decades, their enigmatic nature has...

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Main Authors: Emily M. Dennis, David M. Garcia
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-01-01
Series:Epigenomes
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4655/6/1/4
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author Emily M. Dennis
David M. Garcia
author_facet Emily M. Dennis
David M. Garcia
author_sort Emily M. Dennis
collection DOAJ
description Prions are proteins that can stably fold into alternative structures that frequently alter their activities. They can self-template their alternate structures and are inherited across cell divisions and generations. While they have been studied for more than four decades, their enigmatic nature has limited their discovery. In the last decade, we have learned just how widespread they are in nature, the many beneficial phenotypes that they confer, while also learning more about their structures and modes of inheritance. Here, we provide a brief review of the biochemical principles of prion proteins, including their sequences, characteristics and structures, and what is known about how they self-template, citing examples from multiple organisms. Prion-based inheritance is the most understudied segment of epigenetics. Here, we lay a biochemical foundation and share a framework for how to define these molecules, as new examples are unearthed throughout nature.
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spelling doaj.art-2adfd852bd0741a2b6753100cbb9847f2023-11-24T01:08:08ZengMDPI AGEpigenomes2075-46552022-01-0161410.3390/epigenomes6010004Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based InheritanceEmily M. Dennis0David M. Garcia1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USADepartment of Biology, Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USAPrions are proteins that can stably fold into alternative structures that frequently alter their activities. They can self-template their alternate structures and are inherited across cell divisions and generations. While they have been studied for more than four decades, their enigmatic nature has limited their discovery. In the last decade, we have learned just how widespread they are in nature, the many beneficial phenotypes that they confer, while also learning more about their structures and modes of inheritance. Here, we provide a brief review of the biochemical principles of prion proteins, including their sequences, characteristics and structures, and what is known about how they self-template, citing examples from multiple organisms. Prion-based inheritance is the most understudied segment of epigenetics. Here, we lay a biochemical foundation and share a framework for how to define these molecules, as new examples are unearthed throughout nature.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4655/6/1/4prionepigeneticstransgenerational inheritanceprion-likeprotein aggregationamyloid
spellingShingle Emily M. Dennis
David M. Garcia
Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance
Epigenomes
prion
epigenetics
transgenerational inheritance
prion-like
protein aggregation
amyloid
title Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance
title_full Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance
title_fullStr Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance
title_full_unstemmed Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance
title_short Biochemical Principles in Prion-Based Inheritance
title_sort biochemical principles in prion based inheritance
topic prion
epigenetics
transgenerational inheritance
prion-like
protein aggregation
amyloid
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4655/6/1/4
work_keys_str_mv AT emilymdennis biochemicalprinciplesinprionbasedinheritance
AT davidmgarcia biochemicalprinciplesinprionbasedinheritance