APP/tau (translation)

Class

APP/tau translation inhibitor

Amyloid precursor protein (APP) and tau are two proteins central to Alzheimer's disease pathology. APP is cleaved to generate amyloid-beta peptides that aggregate into plaques, while tau, when abnormally modified, forms the tangles that damage neurons. Rather than blocking the enzymes that cut APP or the aggregation of these proteins after they are made, a translation inhibitor acts one step earlier, at the point where the cell's ribosomes read APP and tau messenger RNA (mRNA) to synthesize new protein. By reducing the rate at which these mRNAs are translated into protein, the overall supply of APP and tau available for pathological processing is lowered. Because both proteins can be regulated through shared or parallel translational control mechanisms, a single agent acting at this level offers the possibility of dampening two major disease-associated pathways simultaneously, rather than requiring separate approaches for amyloid and tau. This translation-level strategy is relevant broadly across neurodegenerative conditions grouped as amyloidopathies and tauopathies, where reducing the production of the offending proteins, rather than only clearing them after formation, is one proposed way to slow disease progression.