A Nano Method for Early Diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease Using Amyloid-β(1-40) Biomarker

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a growing issue in the United States of America with limited measures of early diagnosis. This complex neurodegenerative disorder is irreversible in terms of progression and damage to functionality. Biomarkers have great potential in early AD diagnosis as many of the damaging build-up of protein can be detected twenty years before clinical symptoms appear. There currently are multiple protein, peptide, and microRNA potential biomarkers to diagnose AD. However, a definitive approved biomarker is still necessary to help ameliorate AD. In our study, we investigate a new method with surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to diagnose Alzheimer’s Disease with Amyloid-β(1-40) peptides coated in silver nanoparticles. Our study aims to advance the standard procedure of Aβ1-40 to combat the lack of certified reference material (CRM) in order to facilitate accurate and efficient diagnosis of AD. Aβ1-40 is a 40-amino-acid form of Aβ monomer that aggregates to a polymorphic state of oligomer or fibril. The 40-amino-acid form is composed of the amyloid precursor protein (APP). Aβ1-40 is a potential biomarker for its strong relation to extracellular amyloid plaques and abnormal accumulations in the brain. In the study, the silver-coated peptides will vary in concentration and be assessed via SERS. SERS is an optimized method for molecular specificity with high sensitivity and accuracy. By utilizing SERS and silver nanoparticles, the various concentrations of Aβ1-40 can be evaluated for their compatibility to diagnose AD. Our study proposes a new method with increased accuracy and efficiency in diagnosing AD.