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Nat Neurosci
Published

The toxic Aβ oligomer and Alzheimer's disease: an emperor in need of clothes.

Authors

Iryna Benilova, Eric Karran, Bart De Strooper

Abstract

The 'toxic Aβ oligomer' hypothesis has attracted considerable attention among Alzheimer's disease researchers as a way of resolving the lack of correlation between deposited amyloid-β (Aβ) in amyloid plaques-in terms of both amount and location-and cognitive impairment or neurodegeneration. However, the lack of a common, agreed-upon experimental description of the toxic Aβ oligomer makes interpretation and direct comparison of data between different research groups impossible. Here we critically review the evidence supporting toxic Aβ oligomers as drivers of neurodegeneration and make some suggestions that might facilitate progress in this complex field.

PMID:22286176 | DOI:

UK DRI Authors

Bart De Strooper

Prof Bart De Strooper

Group Leader

Investigating the cellular reaction to amyloid beta and tau protein in Alzheimer's disease

Prof Bart De Strooper