Structure of Pick’s tau distinct from AD tau

In recent years, support has grown for the idea that the same aggregating protein can fold up into different toxic shapes, giving rise to distinct neurodegenerative diseases. Now, in the August 29 Nature, researchers led by Michel Goedert and Sjors Scheres at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England, in collaboration with Bernardino Ghetti and colleagues at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, provide the first molecular-level proof that this happens. More…