Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 16, 2026

Interactions with and Membrane Permeabilization of Brain Mitochondria by Amyloid Fibrils
Published on: September 28, 2019
Amyloid Peptide Nanofibrils Promote Efficient Neurotransmitter Oxidation and Serve as Scaffolds for Melanin
Inhye Kim1, Liam R Marshall1, Shams Aaghaz1
1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Baylor University, One Bear Place, Waco, TX, 76798, USA.
Abstract:
We have shown that de novo designed peptides self-assemble in the presence of copper to create supramolecular assemblies capable of carrying out the oxidation of a range of neurotransmitters in the presence of dioxygen and hydrogen peroxide with high efficiency and in a sequence dependent manner. Moreover, these catalytic peptide assemblies are capable of templating melanin production. Guided by the structure activity relationships identified using the model systems we discovered that peptide assemblies formed by fragments of human carbonic anhydrase VII found in the brain also promote neurotransmitter degradation, supporting its role in neurodegenerative disease. Altogether, our results further support the role of metal-promoted catalysis in neurodegenerative disease and will facilitate development of new catalyst nanomaterials capable of promoting oxidative transformation.
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,...
Amyloid Fibrils
Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitter Synthesis
Assembly of Complex Microtubule Structures
Adrenergic Neurons: Neurotransmission
Synthesis: Catecholamine synthesis requires tyrosine, which...
Neurochemical Transmission: Sites of Drug Action

