The Minnesota Center for Prion Research and Outreach (MNPRO) is a multi-disciplinary center at the University of Minnesota focusing on the biology and epidemiology of human and animal prion diseases and related human protein-misfolding disorders (PMDs). MNPRO collaborates with a range of University of Minnesota faculty and external team members to conduct research with a broad impact on protein-misfolding disorders (PMDs), such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, ALS, and emerging PMDs, such as chronic wasting disease. MNPRO aims to utilize comparative medicine and biology, create a think-tank environment for cutting edge science, develop strategic research priorities in the areas of diagnostics and assessment, and collaborate through targeted outreach to become a worldwide hub for combating neurodegenerative disease.