The unfolded protein response (UPR) is a cellular stress response related to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. It has been found to be conserved between mammalian species, as well as yeast and worm organisms. The UPR is activated in response to an accumulation of unfolded or misfolded proteins in the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum. In this scenario, the UPR has three aims: initially to restore normal function of the cell by halting protein translation, degrading misfolded proteins, and activating the signalling pathways that lead to increasing the production of molecular chaperones involved in protein folding. If these objectives are not achieved within a certain time span or the disruption is prolonged, the UPR aims towards apoptosis. Sustained overactivation of the UPR has been implicated in prion diseases as well as several other neurodegenerative diseases, and inhibiting the UPR could become a treatment for those diseases. Diseases amenable to UPR inhibition include Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and Huntington's disease. Protein folding in the endoplasmic reticulum Protein synthesis The term protein folding incorporates all the processes involved in the production of a protein after the nascent polypeptides have become synthesized by the ribosomes. The proteins destined to be secreted or sorted to other cell organelles carry an N-terminal signal sequence that will interact with a signal recognition particle (SRP). The SRP will lead the whole complex (Ribosome, RNA, polypeptide) to the ER membrane. Once the sequence has “docked”, the protein continues translation, with the resultant strand being fed through the polypeptide translocator directly into the ER. Protein folding commences as soon as the polypeptide enters to the luminal environment, even as translation of the remaining polypeptide continues. Protein folding and quality control Protein folding steps involve a range of enzymes and molecular chaperones to coordinate and regulate reactions, in addition to a range of substrates required in order for the reactions to take place. The most important of these to note are N-linked glycosylation and disulfide bond formation. N-linked glycosylation occurs as soon as the protein sequence passes into the ER through the translocon, where it is glycosylated with a sugar molecule that forms the key ligand for the lectin molecules calreticulin (CRT; soluble in ER lumen) and calnexin (CNX; membrane bound). Favoured by the highly oxidizing environment of the ER, protein disulfide isomerases facilitate formation of disulfide bonds, which confer structural stability to the protein in order for