Inhibiting the Ca2+ Influx Induced by Human CSF

One potential therapeutic strategy for Alzheimer's disease (AD) is to use antibodies that bind to small soluble protein aggregates to reduce their toxic effects. However, these therapies are rarely tested in human CSF before clinical trials because of the lack of sensitive methods that enable the measurement of aggregate-induced toxicity at low concentrations. We have developed highly sensitive single vesicle and single-cell-based assays that detect the Ca2+ influx caused by the CSF of individuals affected with AD and healthy controls, and we have found comparable effects for both types of samples. We also show that an extracellular chaperone clusterin; a nanobody specific to the amyloid-beta peptide (A beta); and bapineuzumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody raised against A beta, could all reduce the Ca2+ influx caused by synthetic A beta oligomers but are less effective in CSF. These assays could be used to characterize potential therapeutic agents in CSF before clinical trials.