prion
prion Lexical Profile
prion Game Scores & Validity
• noun
An abnormal, infectious form of a cellular protein that lacks nucleic acid and causes fatal neurodegenerative diseases by inducing normal cellular proteins to misfold.
"Researchers are actively studying how the prion responsible for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease propagates in human brain tissue."
Any of several small seabirds of the genus Pachyptila, native to the southern oceans and characterized by a serrated bill used to filter zooplankton from seawater.
"While sailing through the frigid Antarctic waters, the crew spotted a flock of prions skimming the surface of the ocean."
• Rhymes for prion
Word Origin & Etymology
In biology, coined in 1982 by American neurologist Stanley B. Prusiner as a portmanteau of 'proteinaceous' and 'infectious', with the suffix '-on' added by analogy to 'virion'. In ornithology, it derives from the Ancient Greek 'priōn' (saw), referring to the serrated edges of the bird's bill.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.