Analysis of Aggregated Proteins: A Crucial Step to Understand BSE and Alzheimer’s Disease

Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer?s, Parkinson?s and the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are characterised by abnormal protein deposits, often with large amyloid fibrils. To understand the genesis of these diseases in the case of Alzheimer?s or the mechanism of its transmission in the case of TSE a crucial point is to look at the mechanism of the aggregation process that lies at the heart of the damaging effect of these diseases. Classical tools that are well established in protein analysis like HPLC, mass spectrometry, or SEC, are not well suited to study protein aggregation, because of their high molar mass and wide molar mass distribution. Here we present a new method that has been successfully used in research on Alzheimer?s or TSE, the combination of asymmetrical Field-Flow Fractionation (AF4) with Multi-Angle Light Scattering (MALS).