prion

[Charles Doyle]

"proteinaceous infectious particle," I believe: A catchy enough name in itself! Those are protein molecules that replicate though apparently they contain no nucleic acids.

--Charlie



---- Original message ----
>Date: Fri, 7 Aug 2009 17:45:28 -0400
>From: Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
>Subject: Re: prion
>
>Renamed from what?
>
>JL
>
>On Fri, Aug 7, 2009 at 4:40 PM, Charles Doyle <cdoyle at uga.edu> wrote:

>>
>> Pondering the (probable) proverb "Rename it and claim it," I encountered a limerick that is said to have satirized Stanley B. Prusiner's coining of the term _prion_ (OED n.2). It appears in Kurt Link, _Understanding New, Resurgent, and Resistant Diseases_ (Westport CT: Praeger, 2007) 163 (endnote 4; the limerick is printed as prose):  "There was a young Turk named Stan who embarked on a devious plan. 'If I simply rename it, I'm sure I can claim it,' said Stan as he pondered his scam."
>>
>> --Charlie

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