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Characterization and Chromosomal Localization of a cDNA Encoding Brain Amyloid of Alzheimer's Disease
Dmitry Goldgaber, Michael I. Lerman, O. Wesley McBride, Umberto Saffiotti, D. Carleton Gajdusek. Science, 1987-02-20
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Four clones were isolated from an adult human brain complementary DNA library with an oligonucleotide probe corresponding to the first 20 amino acids of the beta peptide of brain amyloid from Alzheimer's disease. The open reading frame of the sequenced clone coded for 97 amino acids, including the known amino acid sequence of this polypeptide. The 3.5-kilobase messenger RNA was detected in mammalian brains and human thymus. The gene is highly conserved in evolution and has been mapped to human chromosome 21.
Why it matters
Reports isolating DNA clones that code for the beta peptide of brain amyloid from Alzheimer's disease, and maps the gene to human chromosome 21.
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How this study scored 56/100
Published in a top-tier journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on strength of evidence, so that was left out: it earned 53 of the 95 points we could judge it on, which is 56 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 10 / 10 | Tier 1 — top-tier general journal (Science) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Science: journal h-index 1,754 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | — / 5 | No evidence rating recorded — left out of this score |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1987 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,337 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 32.6 citations a year over 41 year(s) since 1987 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 108.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 23 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author D. Carleton Gajdusek: h-index 95 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | National Institutes of Health: institution h-index 2,723 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 3810169) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 53 / 95 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 53 of the 95 points we could judge it on is 56 out of 100. |
| Total | 56 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
May need a subscription OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 6 Feb 1020), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Goldgaber, D., Lerman, M. I., McBride, O. W., Saffiotti, U., & Gajdusek, D. C. (1987). Characterization and Chromosomal Localization of a cDNA Encoding Brain Amyloid of Alzheimer's Disease. Science. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.3810169
Vancouver
Goldgaber D, Lerman MI, McBride OW, Saffiotti U, Gajdusek DC. Characterization and Chromosomal Localization of a cDNA Encoding Brain Amyloid of Alzheimer's Disease. Science. 1987. doi:10.1126/science.3810169. PMID: 3810169.
BibTeX
@article{goldgaber1987-3810169,
author = {Goldgaber, Dmitry and Lerman, Michael I. and McBride, O. Wesley and Saffiotti, Umberto and Gajdusek, D. Carleton},
title = {{Characterization and Chromosomal Localization of a cDNA Encoding Brain Amyloid of Alzheimer's Disease}},
journal = {Science},
year = {1987},
doi = {10.1126/science.3810169},
pmid = {3810169},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1126/science.3810169}
}
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