A group of American scientists studying dementia from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, the University of Delaware, and Washington University in St. Louis have made an important discovery in the field of Alzheimer's disease. The study presents new data on how changes in the structure of the tau protein are associated with the development of the disease. The results of the study were published in the scientific journal eLife.

What is tau protein?

Tau protein is a protein that is most often found in neurons of the central nervous system. It interacts with microtubules - structures of the cellular cytoskeleton. This protein was first discovered in 1975 by researchers at Princeton University.

While studying the brain tissue of a patient who died of dementia, Alois Alzheimer, after whom the disease is named, noticed neurofibrillary tangles in them, i.e. clusters of tau protein. They are formed when individual proteins stick together, just like the athletes who form a powerful football team on which you bet via 20bet Tailandia.

It was later discovered that these tangles are present in the brain cells of all those suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Moreover, the more severe the dementia, the more tau protein clusters are found. As it turned out, the protein that formed the tangles stops interacting with microtubules and becomes dangerous - these clots begin to damage neurons. At the same time, it was believed that isolated tau protein does not have a clear shape and does not harm the brain.

What did American scientists find out?

A new study has refuted the theory that Alzheimer's disease occurs after the tau protein forms into clots. It turned out that the protein becomes toxic at an even earlier stage - when molecular changes occur in its structure, which leads to the fact that the protein begins to stick together. The team of scientists managed to detect these changes in individual, isolated proteins extracted from the brains of patients.

In an earlier study, the lab of Dr. Mark Diamond, the lead author of this paper, found that toxic tau protein can spread in the brain like a virus. It can also form different strains. As it turns out, each form of tau protein can be associated with different types of dementia.

What does the study mean?

"We think of this as the Big Bang of tau protein research. It's a way to look at the very beginning of the disease process," Diamond said. Now that we know the genesis of the disease, neuroscientists will be able to develop new diagnostic methods that will detect potentially dangerous manifestations of tau protein before they form clots.

The scientists plan to develop a clinical test that will allow them to identify early signs of abnormal changes in tau protein based on an analysis of the patient's blood or cerebrospinal fluid. In parallel, they plan to develop a drug that can stop the process of changing the protein's structure. The authors of the study cite the drug "Tafamide" as an example, which is used in the United States to treat heart pathologies. It blocks a protein called transthyretin, which can change shape, leading to the development of deadly growths in the heart.