2009 Grants - Kim

Design of a Molecular Probe for Rapid In Situ Amyloid Aggregation Detection

Jin Ryoun Kim, Ph.D.
Polytechnic Institute of NYU
New York, New York

2009 New Investigator Research Grant

Beta-amyloid is a protein fragment at the focus of research into the causes of Alzheimer's disease. Beta-amyloid aggregates into a variety of different complexes known as oligomers, fibrils and plaques. Each of these complexes can be toxic to nerve cells, and it is not known which form is responsible for the development of Alzheimer pathology in the human brain.

Jin Ryoun Kim, Ph.D. and colleagues are proposing to develop biochemical probes, or dyes, that selectively recognize each of the different aggregate forms of beta-amyloid. These probes will be constructed from short segments of protein-like material that bind to specific regions of beta-amyloid. The probes will then be used to acquire images of the different forms of beta-amyloid in the living brain. Because the ability of beta-amyloid to aggregate into different forms can change with time, the probes will be designed to allow for rapid brain imaging. The results of such imaging will allow scientists to study which beta-amyloid complexes are responsible for different aspects of Alzheimer pathology. Such knowledge will be valuable for the design of drugs to slow or prevent the progression of disease.