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01-07-2006 | Hypothesis Paper

Koch’s postulates and infectious proteins

Authors: Lary Walker, Harry LeVine, Mathias Jucker

Published in: Acta Neuropathologica | Issue 1/2006

Abstract

Koch’s postulates were formulated in the late nineteenth century as guidelines for establishing that microbes cause specific diseases. Because the rules were developed for living agents—particularly bacteria—their applicability to inanimate pathogens such as viruses and infectious proteins has been problematic. The unorthodox mechanism by which prion diseases are transmitted, involving specific physicochemical characteristics of the protein as well as susceptibility traits of the host, has made these disorders refractory to analysis within the context of the original Koch’s postulates. In addition, evidence is accumulating that other proteopathies, such as AA amyloidosis, apolipoprotein AII amyloidosis, and cerebral Aβ amyloidosis, can be induced in vulnerable recipients by cognate proteinaceous agents. In light of the salient differences in the mode of disease-transmission by microbes and proteins, we propose modifications of Koch’s postulates that will specifically accommodate presumed infectious proteins.

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Title: Koch’s postulates and infectious proteins
Authors: Lary Walker
Harry LeVine
Mathias Jucker
Publication date: 01-07-2006
Publisher: Springer-Verlag
Published in: Acta Neuropathologica / Issue 1/2006
Print ISSN: 0001-6322
Electronic ISSN: 1432-0533
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-006-0072-x

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Koch’s postulates and infectious proteins

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