Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 23, 2026

Monitoring Protein Aggregation Kinetics In Vivo using Automated Inclusion Counting in Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: December 17, 2021
Protein misfolded oligomers: experimental approaches, mechanism of formation, and structure-toxicity relationships
Francesco Bemporad1, Fabrizio Chiti
1Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Lensfield Road, Cambridge CB2 1EW, UK. fb330@cam.ac.uk
Abstract:
The conversion of proteins from their native state to misfolded oligomers is associated with, and thought to be the cause of, a number of human diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and systemic amyloidoses. The study of the structure, mechanism of formation, and biological activity of protein misfolded oligomers has been challenged by the metastability, transient formation, and structural heterogeneity of such species. In spite of these difficulties, in the past few years, many experimental approaches have emerged that enable the detection and the detailed molecular study of misfolded oligomers. In this review, we describe the basic and generic knowledge achieved on protein oligomers, describing the mechanisms of oligomer formation, the methodologies used thus far for their structural determination, and the structural elements responsible for their toxicity.
Related Concept Videos
Amyloid Fibrils
Amyloid deposits were observed as early as 1639 in the liver and the spleen. In 1854, Rudolph Virchow performed iodine staining, normally used to...
Amyloid Fibrils
Amyloid deposits were observed as early as 1639 in the liver and the spleen. In 1854, Rudolph Virchow performed iodine staining, normally used to...
Protein Folding
Protein Folding
Protein Structure Is Critical to Its Biological Function
Proteins perform a wide range of biological functions such as catalyzing chemical reactions, providing...
Protein Folding
Molecular Chaperones and Protein Folding
The...

