Alzheimer's disease: glycolytic pretreatment dramatically enhances immunolabeling of senile plaques and cerebrovascular amyloid substance

• Published in: Laboratory investigation Vol. 61; no. 5; pp. 576 - 583
• Main Authors: Behrouz, N, Defossez, A, Delacourte, A, Hublau, P, Mazzuca, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.11.1989
• Subjects: Alzheimer Disease - metabolism; Alzheimer Disease - pathology; Amyloid - analysis; Cerebral Cortex - analysis; Cerebral Cortex - pathology; Glycoside Hydrolases - metabolism; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Neurofibrils - analysis; Periodic Acid - metabolism; Staining and Labeling
• ISSN: 0023-6837

In Alzheimer's disease, three types of pathologic lesions are stained by thioflavin: neurofibrillary tangles, senile plaques, and amyloidaceous vessels. We have used anti-beta protein amyloid A4 and anti-tau protein antisera and compared immunolabeling with thioflavin staining. Anti-tau detected only neurofibrillary tangles; anti-beta-PA4 immunostained senile plaques and amyloidaceous vessels. Glycolytic pretreatment (2% periodic acid overnight or glycosidases digestion) dramatically enhanced the anti-beta-PA4 immunolabeling of senile plaques, amyloidaceous vessels, and a previously undetected extracellular substance; neurofibrillary tangles were never immunostained. Therefore, glycolytic pretreatment exposes buried epitopes in the amyloid and is a good method for amplification of immunostaining. The nature of the interaction between saccharides and beta-protein amyloid A4 is unknown.