Affiliations: [a] Columbia University Medical Center, Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer's Disease and the Aging Brain, New York, NY, USA | [b] New York State Psychiatric Institute, Department of Integrative Neuroscience, New York, NY, USA
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Dr. Emmanuel Planel, Columbia University Medical Center, Department of Pathology, Taub Institute for Alzheimer's Disease Research, Physicians & Surgeons Building Room #12-440, 630 West 168th Street, New York, NY 10032, USA. Tel.: +1 212 305 8973; Fax: +1 212 342 0119; E-mail: [email protected].
Abstract: Alzheimer's disease brains are characterized by extracellular aggregates of the amyloid-β peptide and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles, composed of aggregated hyperphosphorylated tau protein. The role of aggregated tau in neurodegeneration is still controversial, as evidence point to either a toxic or protective role in the disease. Here, we will first examine tau aggregation and its putative roles in Alzheimer's disease. We will then review the findings concerning different species of tau and their potential toxicity.
