Bacteriophages as a diagnostic tool for early Alzheimer's disease

Abstract

Alzheimers disease is an irreversible, progressive and age-dependent neurodegenerative disorder affecting millions of people worldwide. Amyloid-beta (AB) is a prime suspect to cause Alzheimers disease (AD). An accumulation of AB in the brain leads to its aggregation into soluble oligomeric and fibrillar clusters. In AD-mouse models, these AB oligomers and fibrils impair synaptic function and memory formation. A diagnostic tool to detect AB oligomers/fibrils selectively in the brain is currently not available. Specific amyloidogenic motifs were described to react with AB fibrils and oligomers however, the blood-brain-barrier (BBB) is a major bottleneck for effective brain applications. To overcome this limitation, bacteriophages (phages) and phage display technology represent an interesting tool as delivery vehicles able to shuttle its cargo across the BBB. In this seminar an overview of a project, aiming at developing a cost-effective and safe phage-based tool to selectively diagnose AB oligomers and fibrils during the early stage of AD, as well as some promising results, will be presented.