A newly identified compound is a promising candidate for inhibiting the production of amyloids, the abnormal proteins that form toxic clumps, called fibrils, inside the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. As published today in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Chemical Communications, the compound—known as “C1″—uses a novel mechanism to efficiently prevent the enzyme gamma-secretase from producing amyloids.
Amyloid fibrils are largely composed of the peptide Amyloid beta, which is produced when enzymes, including gamma secretase, make cuts to the amyloid precursor…
