The virino is a hypothetical infectious particle theorized to be the cause of scrapie and other degenerative diseases of the central nervous system; it is thought to consist of nucleic acid in a protective coat of host cell proteins.
The major problem regarding scrapie and other transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) is to determine the nature of the transmission agent.
Read more about Virino: Origin of The Virino Concept, History of Description