Soluble aggregates of the amyloid-β peptide are trapped by serum albumin to enhance amyloid-β activation of endothelial cells

Background Self-assembly of the amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). As a result, synthetic molecules capable of inhibiting Aβ self-assembly could serve as therapeutic agents and endogenous molecules that modulate Aβ self-assembly may influence disease progression. However, increasing evidence implicating a principal pathogenic role for small soluble Aβ aggregates warns that inhibition at intermediate stages of Aβ self-assembly may prove detrimental. Here, we explore the inhibition of Aβ1–40 self-assembly by serum albumin, the most abundant plasma protein, and the influence of this inhibition on Aβ1–40 activation of endothelial cells for monocyte adhesion.