Understanding Tau Seeds: The Role of Protein Clumps on Membranes in Alzheimer's Disease 

Principal Investigator

Mentors

  • James Hurley, PhD

Project Goals

This project will investigate the relationship between the shape of tau seeds and their ability to escape lysosomes and the role of membrane repair machinery in Alzheimer’s disease.

Project Summary

Neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease are caused by the buildup of clumps of proteins that spread from one part of the brain to another, causing progressive brain damage. These protein clumps can interact and disrupt the membranes responsible for containing and destroying them, causing protein clump leakage and spread. This project aims to understand the underlying cause of this membrane leakage for the development of therapies to counteract protein clump escape by promoting the repair of the membranes damaged by these protein clumps. 

Publications

First published on: July 29, 2024

Last modified on: November 23, 2024