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Updated: Mar 25, 2026

Selection of Aptamers for Amyloid β-Protein, the Causative Agent of Alzheimer's Disease
Published on: May 13, 2010
Structure of serum amyloid A suggests a mechanism for selective lipoprotein binding and functions: SAA as a hub in
Nicholas M Frame1, Olga Gursky1
1Department of Physiology & Biophysics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
Abstract:
Serum amyloid A is a major acute-phase plasma protein that modulates innate immunity and cholesterol homeostasis. We combine sequence analysis with x-ray crystal structures to postulate that SAA acts as an intrinsically disordered hub mediating interactions among proteins, lipids and proteoglycans. A structural model of lipoprotein-bound SAA monomer is proposed wherein two α-helices from the N-domain form a concave hydrophobic surface that binds lipoproteins. A C-domain, connected to the N-domain via a flexible linker, binds polar/charged ligands including cell receptors, bridging them with lipoproteins and rerouting cholesterol transport. Our model is supported by the SAA cleavage in the interdomain linker to generate the 1-76 fragment deposited in reactive amyloidosis. This model sheds new light on functions of this enigmatic protein.
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