| abstract |
The present invention relates to a method for identifying and obtaining an inhibitor, capable of modifying the PHF ("paired helical filaments") formation comprising the steps of (a) incubating a peptide comprising a specific tau derived peptide as defined herein or a fragment(s) thereof with a compound to be screened under conditions which permit assembly of said tau-derived peptides into nucleation sites for PHF assembly and/or into aggregation products; and (b) detecting the presence, decrease, or absence of nucleation sites for PHF assembly and/or the presence, decrease or absence of said aggregation products wherein said absence and/or decrease is indicative for putative inhibitors for PHF formation. Furthermore, the present invention provides inhibitors identified of obtained by said method as well as compositions comprising said inhibitor, wherein said composition is preferably a diagnostic and/or a pharmaceutical composition. |