Viscoelasticity of amyloid plaques in transgenic mouse brain studied by Brillouin microspectroscopy and correlative Raman analysis

Mattana, S., Caponi, S., Tamagnini, F. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8741-5094, Fioretto, D. and Palombo, F. (2017) Viscoelasticity of amyloid plaques in transgenic mouse brain studied by Brillouin microspectroscopy and correlative Raman analysis. Journal of Innovative Optical Health Sciences, 10 (6). 1742001. ISSN 1793-7205 doi: 10.1142/S1793545817420019

Abstract/Summary

Amyloidopathy is one of the most prominent hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the leading cause of dementia worldwide, and is characterized by the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain parenchyma. The plaques consist of abnormal deposits mainly composed of an aggregation-prone protein fragment, β-amyloid 1-40/1-42, into the extracellular matrix. Brillouin microspectroscopy is an all-optical contactless technique that is based on the interaction between visible light and longitudinal acoustic waves or phonons, giving access to the viscoelasticity of a sample on a subcellular scale. Here, we describe the first application of micromechanical mapping based on Brillouin scattering spectroscopy to probe the stiffness of individual amyloid plaques in the hippocampal part of the brain of a β-amyloid overexpressing transgenic mouse. Correlative analysis based on Brillouin and Raman microspectroscopy showed that amyloid plaques have a complex structure with a rigid core of β-pleated sheet conformation (β-amyloid) protein surrounded by a softer ring-shaped region richer in lipids and other protein conformations. These preliminary results give a new insight into the plaque biophysics and biomechanics, and a valuable contrast mechanism for the study and diagnosis of amyloidopathy.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/80571
Identification Number/DOI	10.1142/S1793545817420019
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Chemistry, Food and Pharmacy > School of Pharmacy > Division of Pharmacology
Publisher	World Scientific
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