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Updated: Jun 25, 2026

Rapid Generation of Amyloid from Native Proteins In vitro
Published on: December 5, 2013
Structural characterization of a soluble amyloid beta-peptide oligomer
Liping Yu1, Rohinton Edalji, John E Harlan
1Pharmaceutical Discovery Division, GPRD, Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Park, Illinois 60064-6098, USA.
Abstract:
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that is linked to the presence of amyloid beta-peptides that can form insoluble fibrils or soluble oligomeric assemblies. Soluble forms are present in the brains and tissues of Alzheimer's patients, and their presence correlates with disease progression. Long-lived soluble forms can be generated in vitro by using small amounts of aliphatic hydrocarbon chains of detergents or fatty acids in preparations of amyloid beta-peptides. Using NMR, we have characterized soluble oligomers of Abeta preglobulomer and globulomer that are stable and alter synaptic activity. The NMR data indicate that these soluble forms have a mixed parallel and antiparallel beta-sheet structure that is different from fibrils which contain only parallel beta-sheets. Using the structural data, we engineered a disulfide bond into the soluble Abeta globulomer to give a "new" soluble antigen that is stable, homogeneous, and binds with the same affinity to selective antibodies as the parent wt globulomer.
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