Prion-like mechanisms in Alzheimer disease

Senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles are the principal histopathologic hallmarks of Alzheimer disease. The essential constituents of these lesions are structurally abnormal variants of normally generated proteins: Aβ protein in plaques and tau protein in tangles. At the molecular level, both proteins in a pathogenic state share key properties with classic prions, i.e., they consist of alternatively folded, β-sheet-rich forms of the proteins that autopropagate by the seeded corruption and self-assembly of like proteins. Other similarities with prions include the ability to manifest as polymorphic and polyfunctional strains, resistance to chemical and enzymatic destruction, and the ability to spread within the brain and from the periphery to the brain. In Alzheimer disease, current evidence indicates that the pathogenic cascade follows from the endogenous, sequential corruption of Aβ and then tau. Therapeutic options include reducing the production or multimerization of the proteins, uncoupling the Aβ-tauopathy connection, or promoting the inactivation or removal of anomalous assemblies from the brain. Although aberrant Aβ appears to be the prime mover of Alzheimer disease pathogenesis, once set in motion by Aβ, the prion-like propagation of tauopathy may proceed independently of Aβ; if so, Aβ might be solely targeted as an early preventive measure, but optimal treatment of Alzheimer disease at later stages of the cascade could require intervention in both pathways.