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Prions as Therapeutic Proteins and their Prospect as Drug Delivery Agent

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Therapeutic Proteins Against Human Diseases

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Abstract

Prions have been widely regarded as infectious proteins that are responsible for neurodegenerative diseases such as transmissible spongiform encephalopathy in humans and scrapie, bovine spongiform encephalopathy and chronic waste disease in animals. However, some research showed that the cellular form of prion protein (PrPc) has vital roles in cell-cell adhesion and in vivo intracellular signalling, with the possibility of participating in cellular communication in the brain, implying that non-infectious prions have beneficial roles in the cellular network. Moreso, recent studies have documented some therapeutic potentials of prions as active antimicrobial peptides and also capable of playing some roles in the innate and adaptive immunity against some viral infections. Aside from the therapeutic potential, prions also have some of the requirements that score them as good candidates in terms of delivering drugs. Peptide-based nanomaterials are currently being explored as drug delivery agents due to their ability to cross membrane barriers and reach the drug target site. The ability of prions to self-propagate is a common feature of drug delivery agents which can be explored in the form of peptide-based drug vehicles. Interestingly, prions have been reportedly explored for nanomaterials with a wide range of applications in biomedicine. In this chapter, recent and past research on prion proteins, their therapeutic activities and the likelihood of serving as vehicles for drug delivery are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

    Olorunfemi R. Molehin & Ajibade O. Oyeyemi

  2. Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

    Alaba A. Adebayo

  3. Department of Science Laboratory Technology, Faculty of Science, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

    Adeniyi S. Ohunayo

  4. Department of Biochemistry, University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria

    Jacinta O. Okonkwo

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  1. Olorunfemi R. Molehin
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  2. Alaba A. Adebayo
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  3. Adeniyi S. Ohunayo
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  4. Ajibade O. Oyeyemi
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  5. Jacinta O. Okonkwo
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Correspondence to Olorunfemi R. Molehin .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, University of Hail, Hail, Saudi Arabia

    Fahmida Khatoon Zahid Balouch

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Molehin, O.R., Adebayo, A.A., Ohunayo, A.S., Oyeyemi, A.O., Okonkwo, J.O. (2022). Prions as Therapeutic Proteins and their Prospect as Drug Delivery Agent. In: Zahid Balouch, F.K. (eds) Therapeutic Proteins Against Human Diseases. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7897-4_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7897-4_5

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