Cerebrospinal fluid of Alzheimer's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies patients enhances α-synuclein fibril formation in vitro

Deposition of alpha-synuclein (alpha S) aggregates inside brain cells is a pathological hallmark of several neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD), and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Recently, extracellular aS was detected in cerebrospinat fluid (CSF) and plasma of humans. We investigated whether CSF influences alpha S aggregation in vitro using fluorescence spectroscopy with thioflavin S and electron microscopy. We found that CSF obtained from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and DLB patients enhanced the alpha S fibril formation compared with tauopathy and non-central nervous system disease. Thus, CSF of AD and DLB characterized by aggregation of A beta or alpha S might promote f alpha S formation. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.