The transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are a group of fatal neurodegenerative diseases that are also transmissible. The PrP protein is central to the disease process and has been hypothesised to be the infectious agent. Polymorphisms in the PrP gene have been linked to the incubation time of TSE disease, and mutations in the human PrP gene have been suggested to result in genetic TSE disease. Several PrP transgenic models have been developed. These models express PrP from different species, with and without PrP mutations, and at different levels of gene expression. This article discusses the contribution of these transgenic models to our present understanding of the TSE diseases.
