Cited by 48Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchNeuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms

The Role of Amyloid-Beta and Tau in the Early Pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease

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Yin, Xiaomin, Qiu, Yanyan, Zhao, Chenhao, Zhou, Zheng, Bao, Junze, Qian, Wei·2021·Medical Science Monitor

Abstract

The abnormal accumulation of amyloid-b (Ab) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) containing phosphorylated tau proteins are the main histopathological feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Synaptic damage and loss are earlier events than amyloid plaques and NFTs in AD progress and best correlate with cognitive deficits in AD patients. Soluble oligomeric Aß initiates the progression of AD and tau mediates the subsequent synaptic impairments at an early stage of AD. In this review we discuss how Ab or/and tau causes synaptic dysfunction. Ab oligomers gather at synapses and give rise to synaptic death in a variety of ways such as regulating receptors and receptor tyrosine kinases, unbalancing calcium homeostasis, and activating caspases and calcineurin. A large amount of hyperphosphorylated tau exists in the synapse of the AD brain. Aß-triggered synaptic deficits are dependent on tau. Soluble, hyperphosphorylated tau is much more correlated to cognitive decline in AD patients. Tau-targeted therapies have received more attention because the treatments targeting Aß failed in AD. Here, we also review the therapy strategies used to intervene in the very early stages of AD. Soluble hyperphosphorylated tau forms a complex with cell surface receptors, scaffold proteins, or intracellular signaling molecules to damage synaptic function. Therefore, therapeutic strategies targeting synaptic tau at the early stage of AD may ameliorating pathology in AD. This review aims to provide an update on the role of oligomeric Ab and soluble hyperphosphorylated tau in the early pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease and to develop a new treatment strategy based on this.

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  • The main focus of AD therapies has been on removing or reducing Aβ plaques and tau tangles because they are characteristic of AD and thought important in onset and development.

    “Since amyloid-beta (Aβ) plaques and tau tangles are characteristic of AD and are thought to be important in the onset and development of the disease, the main focus of these therapies has been on removing or reducing them.”

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Authors
Yin, X., Qiu, Y., Zhao, C., Zhou, Z., Bao, J., & Qian, W.
Affiliations
Nantong University (CN)
Corresponding author
Qian, Wei
Venue
Medical Science Monitor
Published
2021-06-04
Volume
27
Pages
e933084-e933084
ISSN
  • 1234-1010 (ISSN-L)
  • 1643-3750
OpenAlex
W3170071980
Cited by
48
References
114
Citations by year
2026: 13 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 7
FWCI
0.83
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by-nc-nd
Locations
  • Medical Science Monitor (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Natural Science Foundation of China (81,473,218, 81872875, 81503077, 81170317)
  • Nantong University
  • Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
Keywords
Alzheimer's disease, amyloid-beta oligomers, tau hyperphosphorylation, synaptic dysfunction, early pathogenesis, neurofibrillary tangles, soluble tau, receptor tyrosine kinase, calcium homeostasis, caspase activation, calcineurin, cognitive decline, tau-targeted therapy
MeSH terms
Alzheimer Disease, Animals, Humans, Synapses, Amyloid beta-Peptides, tau Proteins

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