Dynamic Analyses of PrP and PrPSc in Brain Tissues of Golden Hamsters Infected With Scrapie Strain 263K Revealed Various PrP Forms

Objective To expatiate dynamic changes in hamsters infected with scrapie strain 263K, to observe the presence and aggravation of various forms of PrP and PrPSc during incubation period, and to probe primarily the relationship between the onset of clinic manifestations and the presence of different PrPSc forms. Methods Hamster-adapted scrapie strain 263K was intracerebrally inoculated into hamsters. Different forms of PrP and PrPSc were monitored dynamically by Western blot and immuno-histochemical assays. The presence of scrapie-associated fibril (SAF) was assayed by electron microscopy analysis (EM) and immune-golden EM. Results PrPSc was initially detected in the brain tissues of the animals in 20 days post-inoculation by immunohistochemistry and 40 days with Western blot. Quantitative evaluations revealed that the amounts of PrP and PrPSc in brain tissues increased along with the incubation. Several high and low molecular masses of PrP were seen in the brains of the long-life span infected animals. D