Image: artist’s rendering of protein fibrils from computer simulations (in blue) and healthy proteins deposited on them (red). Credit: Ivan Barun, dr. med.
A team of researchers led by Dr Andela Šarić and Prof Tuomas Knowles have shown that the toxic build up of 'plaques' in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, is governed by a simple physical mechanism.
Healthy protein builds up on the surface of protein fibrils, called amyloids. When the deposit reaches a certain amount it triggers fibril self-replication. Once this process has occurred the rate at which new protein fibrils are produced explodes, and results in deterioration in brain function.
However, the study suggests that by controlling the amount of healthy protein making contact with existing fibrils the spread of the pathological protein aggregation could be limited and the disease contained.
Reference
Šarić, A et al. Physical determinants of the self-replication of protein fibrils. Nature Physics; 18 July 2016; DOI: 10.1038/NPHYS3828