Kuru
#77
Kuru is a rare, fatal, neurodegenerative disease caused by a prion (a misfolded protein that builds up in the brain). Death occurs within 1-2 years of symptoms appearing. Kuru is transmitted through contact (eating or open wounds) with the brains of infected individuals.
Symptoms
The average incubation period (the time it takes for symptoms to appear after getting infected) for kuru is 10-13 years, but it has even been shown to be 50+ years in certain cases.
Kuru mainly affects the cerebellum, a brain structure that controls coordination and motor control. Symptoms include:
coordination problems
tremors or muscle jerks
slurred speech
unsteady gait
headache
joint pain
Treatment
There is no treatment/cure for kuru or any other prion disease.
Kuru Throughout History
Kuru was first found in 1957 in the Fore tribes of Papua New Guinea, where relatives consumed the tissues, including brain tissue, of deceased relatives as an act of respect and mourning. Through this ritualistic cannibalism, kuru was spread throughout communities in Papua New Guinea, killing around 3,000 people. The end of cannibalism in the 1960s led to the gradual decline of kuru, which is now considered an extinct disease (last reported cases in the early 2000s).
Fun fact: the word “kuru” means “to tremble from fever or cold” in the Fore language.
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