We found an association with acquired prion disease, including vCJD (p=5·6×10−5), kuru incubation time (p=0·017), and resistance to kuru (p=2·5×10−4), in a region upstream of STMN2 (the gene that encodes SCG10). This evidence concerns the gene STMN2 and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.