It's in Your Body - Amyloids

Amyloids are clumps of protein in the body. They are thought to be the cause of many disease affecting the brain such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's Disease, and other's. We all have and need a certain amount of proteins in our bodies, for it to work right. It is the over abundance of them that causes problems, like proteins getting all revved up with no place to go. But not everybody develops these 'clumps' of proteins.

They are the collections of small fibers made up of misfolded proteins and polypeptides. These are a flat type of protein, rich in 'B-sheets' of a secondary structure. The one that is most known and studied is the 'B-40 which is in the brains of people who have Alzheimer's. Another well-known amyloid is the human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP). This one is found in people with diabetes and Parkinson's diseases.

The fibers of these amyloids are long, thin collections of proteins that contain a 'cross-B' structure. Individual strand of this B structure grow in right angles of the whole fiber growth.

Getting information on the structure of amyloids has been difficult to say the least. They can be seen with the naked eye and cannot be dissolved. But, in its most toxic form is where the difficulty lay in finding out about them. This is where the fibers of the protein are between baby and older growth. Something like the toxic form being a teen-ager, rather than being a fully form protein fiber.

Even though researchers relay on state-of-the-art equipment, it is still hard to see the inside, especially when it is covered by a membrane. What is needed, is more sophisticated imaging equipment, which is under development. As more researchers get into the Amyloid field, they are bring with them, better techniques. Some are coming for the chemistry of the proteins, and others are coming for the education it can give them. It's exciting to learn about our bodies and how it works, one cell and one protein at a time.

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Understanding Amyloids