BBSRC Portfolio Analyser
Award details
Monitoring changes in lymphocyte PrPc epitope expression as a preclinical diagnostic test for scrapie and other TSEs
Reference
BSD17730
Principal Investigator / Supervisor
Professor Ian McConnell
Co-Investigators /
Co-Supervisors
Institution
University of Cambridge
Department
Veterinary Medicine
Funding type
Research
Value (£)
402,232
Status
Completed
Type
Research Grant
Start date
01/04/2002
End date
30/09/2005
Duration
42 months
Abstract
The primary objective of this proposal is the development of a robust high-throughput diagnostic assay for the identification of scrapie (and subsequently other TSEs) in the early stages of infection. In the first instance, this application will focus on a recently discovered modification in PrPc epitope expression on sheep lymphocytes that may be a biochemical indicator for scrapie. The project will study alterations to this and similar PrPc epitopes on sheep lymphocytes isolated from blood and gut-associated primary and secondary lymphoid tissue during development of experimental and natural scrapie. Both flow cytometry and dissociation-enhanced lanthanide fluoroimmunoassay (DELFIA) will be used to quantify changes in PrP epitope expression on lymphocytes and their subsets and correlate this with the appearance of PrPsc and infectivity in lymphoid tissue. Validation of the PrPc lymphocyte marker in scrapie as a TSE diagnostic has implications for its application as a blood-based preclinical test for TSE diseases in other species such as BSE in cattle and vCJD in man.
Summary
unavailable
Committee
Closed Committee - Agri-food (AF)
Research Topics
X – not assigned to a current Research Topic
Research Priority
X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative
Biology Spongiform Encephalopathies - Diagnostics (BSD) [2000]
Funding Scheme
X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme
I accept the
terms and conditions of use
(opens in new window)
export PDF file
back to list
new search