Presence of axonal paired helical filament-tau in Alzheimer's disease: submicroscopic localization.
While normal adult tau protein is found typically in axons, paired helical filament (PHF) tau has been shown immunohistochemically to be in the somatodendritic compartment in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The small amount of PHF-tau (8-11%) found in white matter with immunochemical methods is shown here by immunoelectron microscopy to be located in axons. It is localized to straight filament variants of PHFs. The small amount of PHF-tau in white matter, therefore, appears not to result from the contamination of immunochemical preparations but to be an integral constituent of affected axons in AD.
Bondareff
W
W
Department of Psychiatry, University of Southern California, School of Medicine, Los Angeles.
Harrington
C R
CR
McDaniel
S W
SW
Wischik
C M
CM
Roth
M
M
D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D001369:Axons / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D016253:Microscopy, Immunoelectron; D016874:Neurofibrillary Tangles / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010766:Phosphorylation; D016875:tau Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
D016875:tau Proteins