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Updated: May 28, 2026

Imaging the Intracellular Trafficking of APP with Photoactivatable GFP
Published on: October 17, 2015
Amyloid precursor protein: more than just neurodegeneration
Sanjay W Pimplikar1, Kaushik Ghosal
1Department of Neurosciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, NC-30, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA. pimplis@ccf.org
Abstract:
Amyloid precursor protein (APP) fascinates cell biologists because it is proteolytically processed to generate multiple peptides, including amyloid-β, which is implicated in Alzheimer's disease. However, a large body of data also shows that the extracellular soluble fragment of APP produced by α-secretase (sAPPα) is neuroprotective and promotes neuronal outgrowth. A study by Demars and colleagues appearing in the previous issue provides data showing that sAPPα is a general growth factor for stem cells of multiple lineages. Thus, APP seems to play complex and disparate roles in neurodegeneration and neuroprotection.
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