The Role of Amyloid-β Oligomers in Toxicity, Propagation, and Immunotherapy

The incidence of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is growing every day and finding an effective treatment is becoming more vital. Amyloid-beta (A beta) has been the focus of research for several decades. The recent shift in the A beta cascade hypothesis from all A beta to small soluble oligomeric intermediates is directing the search for therapeutics towards the toxic mediators of the disease. Targeting the most toxic oligomers may prove to be an effective treatment by preventing their spread. Specific targeting of oligomers has been shown to protect cognition in rodent models. Additionally, the heterogeneity of research on A beta oligomers may seem contradictory until size and conformation are taken into account. In this review, we will discuss A beta oligomers and their toxicity in relation to size and conformation as well as their influence on inflammation and the potential of A beta oligomer immunotherapy. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).