APP Processing and Amyloid Plaque Formation

APP Metabolism & A-beta Plaque Formation
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The Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP) is a key player in Alzheimer’s disease. It is a type-I transmembrane protein that is extensively processed by different proteases. This results in the production of multiple peptide fragments, including Amyloid beta (A-beta) peptides. Under normal conditions, the majority of APP cleavage is believed to be dependent on alpha-secretases, such as ADAM9, ADAM10, and TACE/ADAM17, which cleaves APP within the A-beta sequence, producing A-beta (aa1-40). However, changes that occur during aging and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, drive an increased proportion of amyloidogenic processing through BACE-1 and gamma-secretase. This results in the production of A-beta (aa1-42), which can aggregate form amyloid plaques. R&D Systems offers a range of research tools needed for the investigation of the mechanisms underlying APP processing and amyloid plaque formation.