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Research Highlights

Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 7, 646 (1 August 2008) | doi:10.1038/nrd2646

Proteases: Novel route to protease targeting

Monica Hoyos Flight

The membrane protease γ-secretase, which processes the amyloid precursor protein (APP) to produce Aβ42, the 42-residue isoform of the amyloid-β peptide, has been a popular therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease. Many efforts have focused on developing direct protease inhibitors, but intriguingly, a subset of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been found to act as γ-secretase modulators (GSMs) that can selectively lower Aβ42 levels.