AN AMBER MUTATION OF PRION PROTEIN IN GERSTMANN-STRAUSSLER SYNDROME WITH MUTANT PRP PLAQUES

We found an amber mutation in the open reading frame of the prion protein (PrP) gene. The codon 145 mutation (tyrosine to stop) was recognized on a PrP allele of a patient with Alzheimer-type clinical course. Pathologic examination revealed many amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary changes. However, the amyloid plaques in this patient were not composed of β/A4 protein, but of PrP. Both wild and mutant PrP alleles were detected in the cerebral mRNA; however, only C-terminal truncated PrP was detected in the kuru plaques. We herein present evidence that only mutant PrP aggregates to make kuru plaques in the central nervous system. © 1993 Academic Press.