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Updated: Oct 19, 2025
SDS-PAGE/Immunoblot Detection of Aβ Multimers in Human Cortical Tissue Homogenates using Antigen-Epitope Retrieval
Published on: April 23, 2010
An ultra-sensitive immunoassay detects and quantifies soluble Aβ oligomers in human plasma
Lei Liu1, Hyunchang Kwak1, Trebor L Lawton2
1Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 60 Fenwood Road, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA.
Introduction:
Evidence strongly suggests that soluble oligomers of amyloid beta protein (oAβ) help initiate the pathogenic cascade of Alzheimer's disease (AD). To date, there have been no validated assays specific for detecting and quantifying oAβ in human blood.
Methods:
We developed an ultrasensitive oAβ immunoassay using a novel capture antibody (71A1) with N-terminal antibody 3D6 for detection that specifically quantifies soluble oAβ in the human brain, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and plasma.
Results:
Two new antibodies (71A1; 1G5) are oAβ-selective, label Aβ plaques in non-fixed AD brain sections, and potently neutralize the synaptotoxicity of AD brain-derived oAβ. The 71A1/3D6 assay showed excellent dilution linearity in CSF and plasma without matrix effects, good spike recovery, and specific immunodepletion.
Discussion:
We have created a sensitive, high throughput, and inexpensive method to quantify synaptotoxic oAβ in human plasma for analyzing large cohorts of aged and AD subjects to assess the dynamics of this key pathogenic species and response to therapy.
