Hydrogen/Deuterium Exchange-Protected Oligomers Populated during Aβ Fibril Formation Correlate with Neuronal Cell Death

The aggregation of the amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) to form fibrils and plaques is strongly associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Although it is well established that this process generates neurotoxicity, it is also heterogeneous with a variety of species being formed during the conversion process. This heterogeneity makes it difficult to detect and characterize each of the aggregates formed, which precludes establishing the specific features responsible for the neurotoxicity observed. Here we use pulse-labeling hydrogen-deuterium exchange experiments analyzed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (PL-HDX-ESI-MS) to distinguish three ensembles populated during the aggregation of the 40 and 42 residue forms of the Aβ peptide, Aβ40 and Aβ42, on the basis of differences in their persistent structure. Noticeably, two of them are more abundant at the beginning and at the end of the lag phase and are therefore not detectable by conventional assays such as Thioflavin T (ThT). The ensembles populated at diff...