Investigating the Mechanisms of Transthyretin Amyloid Aggregation

In transthyretin amyloidosis, also known as senile systemic amyloidosis when it occurs in the elderly, the protein transthyretin misfolds to precipitate into solid masses. This occurs to varying degrees over the course of aging for all of us, and it is becoming clear that these amyloid aggregates contribute meaningfully to the progression of heart disease, among other conditions. It also seems that transthyretin amyloidosis is what finally kills most supercentenarians, the oldest of people who evade every other fatal age-related condition. There is a potential therapy to break down this form of amyloid that last year demonstrated very promising results in a human clinical trial, but it is currently locked into the slow regulatory path to availability; development has been ongoing for most of the last decade at a glacial pace. It is frustrating, given that this or a similar treatment should be used by pretty much everyone over the age of 40 every few years, and such a treatment should reduce the incidence of many fatal age-related conditions. Meanwhile, other research groups are continuing their investigations of the mechanisms of this form of amyloidosis and considering potential approaches to clearing transthyretin amyloid: The tetrameric thyroxine transport protein transthyretin (TTR) forms amyloid fibrils upon dissociation and monomer unfolding. The aggregation of TTR causes life-threatening transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) associated with three conditions ...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs