Emerging Infectious Disease ISSN: 1080-6059

Chronic Wasting Disease Prions in Elk Antler Velvet

Rachel C. Angers¹, Tanya S. Seward, Dana Napier, Michael Green, Edward Hoover, Terry Spraker, Katherine O’Rourke, Aru Balachandran, and Glenn C. Telling

Author affiliations: University of Kentucky Medical Center, Lexington, Kentucky, USA (R.C. Angers, T.S. Seward, D. Napier, M. Green, G.C. Telling); Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (E. Hoover, T. Spraker); US Department of Agriculture, Pullman, Washington, USA (K. O’Rourke); Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (A. Balachandran); 1Current affiliation: Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK.

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Figure 6

Detection of CerPrPSc (disease-associated form of cervid prion protein [PrP]) in brain and antler velvet from chronic wasting disease (CWD)–affected elk after serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA). Western blots demonstrate amplification of protease-resistant prion protein (PrP) after serial PMCA when seeded with brain or velvet antler material from CWD-affected elk. Brain samples: lane 1, Tg(CerPrP)1536+/– brain material not treated with proteinase K (PK); lane 2, Tg(CerPrP)1536

Figure 6. Detection of CerPrP^Sc (disease-associated form of cervid prion protein [PrP]) in brain and antler velvet from chronic wasting disease (CWD)–affected elk after serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA). Western blots demonstrate amplification of protease-resistant prion protein (PrP) after serial PMCA when seeded with brain or velvet antler material from CWD-affected elk. Brain samples: lane 1, Tg(CerPrP)1536^+/– brain material not treated with proteinase K (PK); lane 2, Tg(CerPrP)1536^+/– brain material used as a negative control seed for the PMCA reactions; lanes 3–9, 10^–2 to 10^–8 dilutions of 10% elk brain homogenate. Antler velvet samples: lane 1, Tg(CerPrP)1536^+/– brain material not treated with PK; lane 2, Tg(CerPrP)1536^+/– brain material used as a negative control seed for the PMCA reactions; lanes 3–9, replicate 10^–2 dilutions of 10% antler velvet homogenate. Samples were either treated or not treated with PK as indicated. Membranes were probed with monoclonal antibody 6H4. Tg, transgenic.

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