Nature Medicine8, 1270 - 1275 (2002)
Published online: 15 October 2002; | doi:10.1038/nm783
Generation of antibodies specific for -amyloid by vaccination of patients with Alzheimer disease
Christoph Hock1, 2, Uwe Konietzko1, 2, Andreas Papassotiropoulos1, Axel Wollmer1, Johannes Streffer1, Ruth C. von Rotz1, Gabriela Davey1, Eva Moritz1
& Roger M. Nitsch1
1
Division of Psychiatry Research, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
2
C.H. and U.K. contributed equally to this study.
To characterize antibodies produced in humans in response to A42 vaccination, we carried out immunohistochemical examinations of the brains of both transgenic mice and human patients with -amyloid pathology. We collected sera from patients with Alzheimer disease who received a primary injection of pre-aggregated A42 followed by one booster injection in a placebo-controlled study. Antibodies in immune sera recognized -amyloid plaques, diffuse A deposits and vascular -amyloid in brain blood vessels. The antibodies did not cross-react with native full-length -amyloid precursor protein or its physiological derivatives, including soluble A42. These findings indicate that vaccination of AD patients with A42 induces antibodies that have a high degree of selectivity for the pathogenic target structures. Whether vaccination to produce antibodies against -amyloid will halt the cognitive decline in AD will depend upon clinical assessments over time.
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