Amyloid-β: The seeds of darkness

Whilst the amyloid-beta (A beta) hypothesis/centric theory continues to evolve, genetic, biochemical and pathological evidence still suggests that A beta is central to the etiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD). In particular, A beta-oligomers/soluble A beta, may be an earlier determinant of Alzheimer's disease and better correlative of cognitive impairment. Whilst there are a number of A beta-oligomeric species in existence (making therapeutic and diagnostic biomarker choice cumbersome), their existence is in equilibrium with A beta-fibrils, the main constituent of cored plaques. Although Alzheimer's disease remains incurable, improvements to A beta immunotherapies and strategies to target A beta continue to evolve, with the reliance upon A beta imaging to shed light on the outcome of therapeutics proving very useful. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.