The active role of Ca2+ ions in Aβ-mediated membrane damage

Calcium dysregulation, membrane leakage and Aβ amyloid growth are hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease. Here we show that Ca2+ ions inhibit membrane damage due to amyloid channels but enhance membrane disruption associated with fibers growing on the lipid surface. The similarities with IAPP suggest that this may represent a mechanism common to all proteinopathies.