Answer The paper by Hill et al. A change of this policy is not indicated on the basis of the new report by Hill et al. The paper of Hill et al. The data by Hill et al. also show that PrP Sc seems to be associated with the follicular dendritic cells in the lymphatic tissues, and not with lymphocytes. The recent study demonstrates clearly that the promoting role of B lymphocytes does not depend on the production of PrP c , generally accepted to be a prerequisite for the propagation of TSE agents.
Further studies have to focus on the role of the follicular dendritic cells in pathogenesis.
The question as to how the TSE agents reaches these cells have also to be addressed.