by Josh Byrom

Created on: January 12, 2010

Out of any disease in the world, Kuru is the most interesting. It is contracted in the most disgusting way; through cannibalism. It was first seen in the 1950s and ‘60s when an odd disease started to be seen among villages in Papua New Guinea, along the Oceanic country. (Mitchum, 2009) It was discovered by western scientists, and the researchers originally thought that Kuru was hereditary, due to no detection of any classic signs of an infection. (Arnold, 2009) The name of the disease, Kuru, comes from a Fore word that means “shiver,” which represents one of the symptoms. (Mitchum, 2009) The disease, “is a fatal neurologic disease that is restricted to the highlands of New Guinea, where it has afflicted the Fore (pronounced for-ay) people, a tribe of remote highland natives.” (Janson, et al; 2009) Kuru belongs to a certain class of diseases that are called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). (National Institutes of Health, 2009) It is also considered to be the prototype for other prion diseases, such as scrapie, BSE, etc. (Janson, et al; 2009) Before continuing, one must first understand what prions are. They’re synonymous with TSEs, and, “are a family of rare progressive neurodegenerative disorders that affect both humans and animals.” (Department of Health, 2006) Prions are agents that can induce abnormal folding of the cellular prion proteins in the brain, which are capable of causing brain damage. (Department of Health, 2006)

Prions, which are naturally occurring proteins, are found in the central nervous system and many other places. (Janson, et al; 2009) Basically, if these proteins become resistant to degradation, they build up in the central nervous system, and cause a spongy appearance; hence, why this and the other diseases within this class are called spongiform encephalopathies. (Janson, et al; 2009)

The cause of this disease is quite disgusting. The Fore people often practiced ritualistic cannibalism, where the people prepared and consumed the tissues of the dead family members, including the brain. (National Institutes of Health, 2009) It is important to note, also, that the women and children were the ones who ate the brain, which is the most infectious organ. (Janson, et al; 2009) The men ate the meaty parts of the body, where the disease did not usually ravage.

 Like any prion disease, Kuru has a long incubation period, noticeable changes, neurologically, and failure

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>