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Hydration water mobility is enhanced around tau amyloid fibers
Fichou Y, Schirò G, Gallat FX, Laguri C, Moulin M, Combet J, Zamponi M, Härtlein M et al.. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2015-04-27
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
The paired helical filaments (PHF) formed by the intrinsically disordered human protein tau are one of the pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer disease. PHF are fibers of amyloid nature that are composed of a rigid core and an unstructured fuzzy coat. The mechanisms of fiber formation, in particular the role that hydration water might play, remain poorly understood. We combined protein deuteration, neutron scattering, and all-atom molecular dynamics simulations to study the dynamics of hydration water at the surface of fibers formed by the full-length human protein htau40. In comparison with monomeric tau, hydration water on the surface of tau fibers is more mobile, as evidenced by an increased fraction of translationally diffusing water molecules, a higher diffusion coefficient, and increased mean-squared displacements in neutron scattering experiments. Fibers formed by the hexapeptide (306)VQIVYK(311) were taken as a model for the tau fiber core and studied by molecular dynamics simulations, revealing that hydration water dynamics around the core domain is significantly reduced after fiber formation. Thus, an increase in water dynamics around the fuzzy coat is proposed to be at the origin of the experimentally observed increase in hydration water dynamics around the entire tau fiber. The observed increase in hydration water dynamics is suggested to promote fiber formation through entropic effects. Detection of the enhanced hydration water mobility around tau fibers is conjectured to potentially contribute to the early diagnosis of Alzheimer patients by diffusion MRI.
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APA 7th
Fichou, Y., Schirò, G., Gallat, F. X., Laguri, C., Moulin, M., Combet, J., et al. (2015). Hydration water mobility is enhanced around tau amyloid fibers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1422824112
Vancouver
Fichou Y, Schirò G, Gallat FX, Laguri C, Moulin M, Combet J, et al. Hydration water mobility is enhanced around tau amyloid fibers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2015. doi:10.1073/pnas.1422824112. PMID: 25918405.
BibTeX
@article{fichou2015-25918405,
author = {Fichou, Y. and Schirò, G. and Gallat, F. X. and Laguri, C. and Moulin, M. and Combet, J. and Zamponi, M. and Härtlein, M. and others},
title = {{Hydration water mobility is enhanced around tau amyloid fibers}},
journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America},
year = {2015},
doi = {10.1073/pnas.1422824112},
pmid = {25918405},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1422824112}
}
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Key findings
- Fibers formed by the hexapeptide (306)VQIVYK(311) were taken as a model for the tau fiber core and studied by molecular dynamics simulations, revealing that hydration water dynamics around the core domain is significantly reduced after fiber formation.
Why it matters
Using neutron scattering and molecular dynamics simulations, this laboratory study found that hydration water is more mobile around tau fibers than around monomeric tau, while water dynamics around the fiber core domain were reduced after fiber formation. This is basic in-vitro work on tau fiber formation and does not test any treatment, cure or prevention in people.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 46/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences: journal h-index 1,167 (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 | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2015 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| 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) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 98 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 7.5 citations a year over 13 year(s) since 2015 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 9.3× 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 17 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Martin H. Weik: h-index 54 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique: institution h-index 2,511 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 12 institution(s) in 4 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 25918405) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 46 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1422824112
- PubMed: 25918405
- Original source →
- Free full text: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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