Significance: In Alzheimer’s disease, the microtubule-associated protein Tau is invariably found in a hyperphosphorylated and aggregated form. Whether (hyper)phosphorylation can drive aggregation is less clear, and no precise phosphorylation pattern leading to aggregation has been described. Combining in vitro phosphorylation assays with purified kinases and a rat brain extract with the analytical power of NMR spectroscopy, we unravel here the phosphorylation pattern of Tau that drives its aggregation. The results point to the importance of this posttranslational modification in Tau's aggregation and suggest orienting therapeutic strategies toward phosphorylated Tau.
16 March 2006 in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment