Alzheimer Disease ; Brain ; Humans ; tau Proteins

Alzheimer Disease ; genetics ; metabolism ; therapy ; Humans ; tau Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic central neurodegenerative disease. The pathological features of AD are the extracellular deposition of senile plaques formed by amyloid-β oligomers (AβOs) and the intracellular accumulation of neurofibrillary tangles formed by hyperphosphorylated tau protein. In this paper, an in vitro pathological model of AD based on neuronal network chip and its real-time dynamic analysis were presented. The hippocampal neuronal network was cultured on the microelectrode array (MEA) chip and induced by AβOs as an AD model to simultaneously record two firing patterns from the interneurons and pyramidal neurons. The spatial firing patterns mapping and cross-correlation between channels were performed to validate the degeneration of neuronal network connectivity. This biosensor enabled the detection of the AβOs toxicity responses, and the identification of connectivity and interactions between neuronal networks, which can be a novel technique in the research of AD pathological model .
Alzheimer Disease ; Amyloid beta-Peptides ; Humans ; Neurofibrillary Tangles ; tau Proteins

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic central neurodegenerative disease. The pathological features of AD are the extracellular deposition of senile plaques formed by amyloid-β oligomers (AβOs) and the intracellular accumulation of neurofibrillary tangles formed by hyperphosphorylated tau protein. In this paper, an in vitro pathological model of AD based on neuronal network chip and its real-time dynamic analysis were presented. The hippocampal neuronal network was cultured on the microelectrode array (MEA) chip and induced by AβOs as an AD model in vitro to simultaneously record two firing patterns from the interneurons and pyramidal neurons. The spatial firing patterns mapping and cross-correlation between channels were performed to validate the degeneration of neuronal network connectivity. This biosensor enabled the detection of the AβOs toxicity responses, and the identification of connectivity and interactions between neuronal networks, which can be a novel technique in the research of AD pathological model in vitro.
Alzheimer Disease ; Amyloid beta-Peptides ; Humans ; Neurofibrillary Tangles ; tau Proteins

BACKGROUND: Taxane-platinum combinations are often used as first-line treatments for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Response to chemotherapy for these patients is still poor. The aim of our study was to investigate, for this disease, whether KRAS and Tau proteins affect responses to taxane-platinum combinations. METHODS: Expression of KRAS and Tau was examined immunohistochemically in 71 tumor samples obtained from patients with stage IIIB or IV NSCLC prior to combination therapy. Expression was correlated with tumor responses. RESULTS: The response rate was 55% (39 of 71). KRAS and Tau were expressed in seven (10%) and 31 (44%) patients, respectively. All seven KRAS-positive patients were non-responders (p=0.014). Among Tau-positive patients, 35% (11 of 31) responded to therapy, whereas a partial response was observed in 70% (28 of 40) of Tau-negatives (p=0.045). Two were positive for both, and they were non-responders. In patients negative for both, the response rate was 71% (25 of 35) (p=0.012). CONCLUSIONS: Expression of KRAS and Tau are significantly correlated with poor responses to this combination therapy in advanced NSCLC patients, and may be a useful marker for chemoresistance.
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Humans ; Lung ; Lung Neoplasms ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins ; ras Proteins ; tau Proteins

During recent years, there has been remarkable progress with respect to the identification of molecular mechanisms and underlying pathology of neurodegenerative dementias. The latest evidence indicates that a common cause and pathological mechanism of diverse neurodegenerative dementias can be found in the increased production, misfolding, aggregation, and accumulation of specific proteins such as beta-amyloid, tau protein, alpha-synuclein, prion protein, polyglutamine, transactive response DNA-binding protein (TARDBP or TDP-43), or fused in sarcoma (FUS). The conformational variants of these proteins range from small oligomers to the characteristic pathologic inclusions. However, it is noteworthy that a certain pathology can be a hallmark of a certain dementia, but there is a substantial overlap between different pathologies and different types of dementias. In this review, molecular mechanisms and pathologies of different neurodegenerative dementias will be summarized from the perspective of proteins rather than from the viewpoint of individual dementias. We will also review recent evidence surrounding these protein misfolding disorders, the role of toxic oligomers, cell-to-cell transmission, and the links between the misfolded proteins, along with the general therapeutic strategies for the protein misfolding disorders.
alpha-Synuclein ; Dementia ; Neurodegenerative Diseases ; Peptides ; Proteins ; Proteostasis Deficiencies ; Sarcoma ; tau Proteins

Extracellular deposition of β-amyloid (Aβ) and intracellular hyperphosphorylated tau are the predominant pathological changes in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Increasing evidence demonstrates a critical role of a variety of small GTPases, namely Ras-related proteins (Rabs), in the pathogenesis of AD. As crucial regulators of intracellular membrane trafficking, alteration in Rab protein expression and function represents one of the primary factors contributing to the abnormal membrane trafficking in AD. Additionally, the Rab GTPases are also involved in the development of Aβ, tau and other pathological changes associated with AD. In this article, we conduct a comprehensive review on the primary functions of multiple Rab proteins and their involvement in the pathogenesis of AD.
Humans ; Alzheimer Disease ; rab GTP-Binding Proteins/metabolism* ; Amyloid beta-Peptides/metabolism* ; tau Proteins/metabolism*

BACKGROUND: Tauopathies are a group of diseases caused by the accumulation of hyperphosphorylated tau protein in the central nervous system. Previous studies have revealed that there is considerable overlap in clinical, pathological, and genetic features among different taupathies. CASE REPORT: We report a patient with non-fluent/agrammatic primary progressive aphasia at the initial assessment. Over time, other symptoms belonging to corticobasal degeneration and progressive supranuclear palsy appeared in this patient. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical overlapping features in these disorders may represent different phenotypes of a single disease process.
Aphasia, Primary Progressive* ; Central Nervous System ; Humans ; Phenotype ; Supranuclear Palsy, Progressive ; tau Proteins ; Tauopathies

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the pathology of amyloid plaques and tau-associated neurofibrillary tangles. Acetylcholine esterase (AChE) transforms the beta-amyloid monomer into an oligomer, and increases beta-amyloid aggregation in the brain. Increased beta-amyloid breaks the cytoskeleton of the brain by hyperphosphorylation of the tau protein. Previous studies support that AChE inhibitor has an inhibitory effect on toxicity of the beta-amyloid and phophorylated tau protein. The purpose of this study was to analyze the CSF beta-amyloid 1-42 (A beta 1-42) and phosphorylated tau protein in AD and determine their difference depending on whether AChE inhibitor was taken or not. METHODS: Subjects included 16 AD, 14 normal controls, and 15 disease controls. Nine of AD group had taken an AChE inhibitor while the remainder had not. The CSF A beta 1-42 and phosphorylated tau were measured by ELISA. RESULTS: The CSF A beta 1-42 levels were lower in AD patients than in other groups (p<0.01). We also found increased CSF A beta 1-42 levels in the AChE inhibitor users, compared with non-users. CONCLUSIONS: The level of CSF A beta 1-42 may have a diagnostic value in the patients with cognitive impairments. Also, we may expect the effect of AChE inhibitor on Alzheimer's pathology by measuring CSF A beta 1-42 levels. Therefore, the level of CSF A beta 1-42 may serve as a biological surrogate marker for AD treatment.
Acetylcholine ; Alzheimer Disease ; Biomarkers ; Brain ; Cytoskeleton ; Humans ; Neurofibrillary Tangles ; Plaque, Amyloid ; tau Proteins

Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that usually takes many years from preclinical phase to prodromal phase characterized by mild symptoms before the onset of dementia. Once diagnosed with AD, the brain is already severely damaged and the disease will process quickly to the most severe stages since there is no medications that reverse the neuronal injuries in the brain. Thus, simple, inexpensive, and widely available methods for detecting potential AD patients during their preclinical phases are urgently needed. In such case, olfactory testing may offer a chance for early diagnosis of AD. However, there are limitations in these olfactory tests due to the complexity of the brain areas it extends to and the frequently olfactory fatigue occurred in the behavioral olfactory tests. Great efforts have been done epidemiologically to investigate the correlation between olfactory functions and possibility of developing AD. Different patterns of olfactory dysfunction have been found in AD at early stages and even mild cognitive impairment (MIC), but the cause of the dysfunction remained unclear. Various kinds of AD animal models have been used in the field to clarify the existence of olfactory dysfunctions and thus study the underling mechanism of the dysfunction. In this review we discuss (1) the function of Tau physiologically and pathologically; (2) the genetic background and biological characteristics of the most commonly used Tau transgenic mice; (3) the structural and molecule basis of olfaction; (4) the possible relationship between Tau pathology and olfactory dysfunction. Finally, we suggest that the tau transgenic mouse models may be helpful in studying the possible mechanisms of the dysfunction.
Alzheimer Disease ; physiopathology ; Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Mice ; Mice, Transgenic ; Olfaction Disorders ; physiopathology ; tau Proteins