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What is the role of amyloid in Alzheimers Disease?
Clearly Alzheimers Disease is associated with abnormal accumulation of a breakdown product of the amyloid precursor protein known as beta-amyloid or Aβ-amyloid, especially in the insoluble form.
Amyloid appears to be toxic to cells in vitro, and abnormal accumulation may actually cause cell loss.
No one knows why the Aβ-amyloid accumulates, but accumulation may be secondary to abnormal processing within neurons, as well as to problems with clearance of amyloid from the brain.
Sources
- Terry RD, Masliah E, Salmon DP, Butters N, DeTeresa R, Hill R, et al.: Physical basis of cognitive alterations in Alzheimer’s disease: synapse loss is the major correlate of cognitive impairment. Ann Neurol 30(4):572-580, 1991.
- Neary D, Snowden JS, Gustafson L, Passant U, Stuss D, Black S, et al.: Frontotemporal lobar degeneration: a consensus on clinical diagnostic criteria. Neurology 51(6):1546-1554, 1998.
