Japan Team Elucidates Protein Mechanism to Prevent Alzheimer's

Osaka, Feb. 3 (Jiji Press)--A team of Japanese researchers said Tuesday that they have elucidated how a protein inside the brain prevents the accumulation of a substance that causes Alzheimer's disease, an achievement that may lead to the development of treatments for the currently incurable neurodegenerative disease. Alzheimer's disease is believed to be caused by senile plaques inside the brain that generate through the accumulation of amyloid beta, a peptide. It has been also known that another protein inside the brain, called sorLA, helps curb the accumulation of the peptide. The team, led by Junichi Takagi, professor at Osaka University's Institute for Protein Research, has finally unveiled the receptor protein's structure and mechanism. According to their article published online by U.S. scientific journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, Takagi and his colleagues analyzed details of sorLA by using a fluorescence polarization method and found a domain of the protein has a 10-bladed beta-propeller fold with a large tunnel at the center. The domain, called Vps10p, is capable of capturing amyloid beta and other peptides for degradation by using a unique binding side located at the inner wall of the propeller tunnel, the researchers found. Because sorLA is expected to lower the risk of Altzheimer's onset and help prevent its progression in patients, the elucidation of its structure and mechanism may prove to be important for those pursuing a successful therapeutic approach to treat the disease, they said in the article. END