Here’s our simpler summary:
Researchers studied a condition called Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), which involves abnormal tau protein in the brain. They wanted to understand why some patients with PSP progress faster than others. To do this, they looked at the tau protein in 20 different areas of the brain in 25 PSP patients.
They discovered that a specific kind of tau, called HMW-Tau, was linked to the speed of disease progression. More of this HMW-Tau in the primary motor cortex (an area of the brain) was linked to faster disease progression. They also found out that the immune system played a role in the differences seen between patients.
They further studied where and how this HMW-Tau was present in the brain and noticed it varied between patients and even within different parts of the brain. In some patients, the presence of this HMW-Tau was linked to tau "clumps" or oligomers.
In short, the type and location of tau protein in the brain could be a reason why PSP progresses differently in patients.
Full Original Article-
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.09.28.559953
By: Ivan Martinez-Valbuena, Seojin Lee, Enrique Santamaria, Joaquin Fernandez Irigoyen, Shelley Forrest, Jun Li, Hidetomo Tanaka, Blas Couto, Nikolai Gil Reyes, Hania Qamar, Ali M Karakani, Ain Kim, Konstantin Senkevich, Ekaterina Rogaeva, Susan H Fox, Carmela Tartaglia, Naomi P Visanji, Tallulah Andrews, Anthony E Lang, Gabor Geza Kovacs
