Genetics, Vol 133, 979-988, Copyright © 1993

INVESTIGATIONS

Delimiting the Location of the Scrapie Prion Incubation Time Gene on Chromosome 2 of the Mouse

G. A. Carlson, C. Ebeling, M. Torchia, D. Westaway and S. B. Prusiner
McLaughlin Research Institute, Great Falls, Montana 59401

Scrapie is a transmissible neurodegenerative disease caused by unusual pathogens called prions. The interval between inoculation and illness for experimental mouse scrapie is dramatically influenced by an incubation time gene (Prn-i) that is linked to Prn-p, the structural gene for prion protein (PrP). Although prion proteins from mouse strains with short and long scrapie incubation times differ by two amino acids, mice with discordant disease phenotype and Prn-p genotype occur in segregating crosses, suggesting recombination between Prn-p and a distinct incubation time locus. In addition, expression of Prn-p(b) transgenes from long incubation time mice shortened, rather than prolonged, incubation time. In this study, mice carrying chromosomes with meiotic crossovers near Prn-p were analyzed for scrapie incubation time phenotype. The results indicated that Prn-i (should it exist) must lie within an interval 0.67 cM proximal and 0.22 cM distal to Prn-p. The results also suggest that the cumulative effects of other genes, rather than meiotic recombination, were responsible for the putative recombinants of earlier studies. However, the effect of Prn-p(b) transgene expression in abbreviating scrapie incubation time was mitigated when the transgenes were transferred to mice with an endogenous long incubation time allele. Thus, Prn-p(b) transgenes and Prn-i may modulate scrapie pathogenesis by different mechanisms.

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