Probing and trapping a sensitive conformation: amyloid-β fibrils, oligomers, and dimers (original) (raw)

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease with pathological misfolding of amyloid-β protein (Aβ). The recent interest in Aβ misfolding intermediates necessitates development of novel detection methods and ability to trap these intermediates. We speculated that two regions of Aβ may allow for detection of specific Aβ species: the N-terminal and 22-35, both likely important in oligomer interaction and formation. We determined via epitomics, proteomic assays, and electron microscopy that the Aβ(42) species (wild type, ΔE22, and MetOx) predominantly formed fibrils, oligomers, or dimers, respectively. The 2H4 antibody to the N-terminal of Aβ, in the presence of 2% SDS, primarily detected fibrils, and an antibody to the 22-35 region detected low molecular weight Aβ species. Simulated molecular modeling provided insight into these SDS-induced structural changes. We next determined if these methods could be used to screen anti-Aβ drugs as well as identify compo...