Ency. home > Disease > K > Kuru

Kuru   

Overview | Symptoms | Treatment | Prevention

Definition:

Kuru is a neurodegenerative disease caused by a prion (infectious protein) which is transmitted to humans via ingestion of contaminated human brain tissue.

Causes and Risks

Kuru is a rare prion disease, originally described among New Guineans. Kuru causes neurodegenerative changes similar to another prion disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, whose distribution is worldwide. In addition, similar prion diseases appear in sheep as scrapie, mink as mink encephalopathy, and in cows as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The main risk factor in the development of kuru has been the practice of cannibalism, which results in contamination with infected brain tissue.

Kuru may begin with a gait disturbance (cerebellar ataxia) and increasing incoordination. Incoordination and unsteady gait eventually leads to severe disability. Tremors and muscle jerks are often seen in the later stages of the disease. Difficulty in swallowing and inability to feed oneself lead to malnutrition or starvation.

The incubation period (time to the development of symptoms) for this disease can be up to 30 years or longer. Death, however, usually occurs within a year after the onset of symptoms.

Ency. home > Disease > K > Kuru

---

[an error occurred while processing this directive]