Characterizing the Aggregation Pathway of Mutated Tau Protein

The aggregation of tau protein is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy typical of athletes and is associated with multiple forms of dementia. There is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease and early stage diagnosis is still impossible but recent studies have begun to investigate tau’s aggregation pathways. Aggregation of tau can be triggered by oxidative stress, crowding effects, mutations and posttranslational modifications. Since tau is an intrinsically disordered protein it is difficult to study these changes using experimental techniques such as NMR and X-ray diffraction. Thus, in this project, we use molecular dynamics simulations to characterize the conditions under which tau aggregation is triggered. We will discuss the latest findings on the effects of point mutations and ionizing radiation on the aggregation pathway of tau.