What is the Difference Between Amyloid Plaques and Neurofibrillary Tangles?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚Amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles are two abnormal structures found in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer's disease. They are distinct in their composition and location within the brain.
Amyloid Plaques:
- Found in the tissue between nerve cells.
- Composed of unusual clumps of a protein called beta-amyloid, along with degenerating bits of neurons and other cells.
- These plaques are thought to interfere with the proper functioning of neurons and contribute to the neurodegeneration observed in Alzheimer's disease.
Neurofibrillary Tangles:
- Found within neurons.
- Composed of bundles of twisted filaments, mainly made up of a protein called tau.
- In healthy neurons, tau helps stabilize microtubules, which are part of the cell's structural support and help deliver substances throughout the nerve cell.
- In Alzheimer's disease, tau is altered in a way that causes it to twist into pairs of helical filaments that collect into tangles.
- When this happens, the microtubules cannot function correctly, and they disintegrate, leading to the collapse of the neuron's transport system.
The exact relationship between amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles is not yet fully understood, and researchers are still exploring whether these structures are harmful or if they are simply a byproduct of the disease process. However, it is known that both plaques and tangles usually increase in the brain as Alzheimer's disease progresses.
Comparative Table: Amyloid Plaques vs Neurofibrillary Tangles
The main differences between amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles are their composition, location, and structure. Here is a table summarizing these differences:
| Feature | Amyloid Plaques | Neurofibrillary Tangles |
|---|---|---|
| Composition | Amyloid-beta peptides | Tau proteins |
| Location | Extracellular (outside the brain's cells) | Intracellular (inside the brain's cells) |
| Structure | Roughly spherical, often staining with Congo red, silver stains, and thioflavine | Insulin |
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