Mapping harmful shapes of tau protein in Alzheimer’s
Official title: Structural profiling of tauopathy seeds
Funded at Ut Southwestern Medical Center · NIH-11456925 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are figuring out the different harmful shapes that the tau protein takes in people with Alzheimer’s and related brain diseases so those conditions can be detected earlier.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Ut Southwestern Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Dallas, United States) |
| Project start | February 15, 2023 |
| Project end | January 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $415,000 |
| NIH project number | 4R01AG076459-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11456925 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates would include people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or other tauopathies who can provide clinical information and biosamples such as blood, cerebrospinal fluid, or, in some cases, brain tissue donations.
✕Less likely to help
People whose symptoms are due to non-tau causes of dementia or those seeking immediate therapeutic benefit rather than diagnostic research are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this project.
What this research studies
The team will use high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy and laboratory experiments to map the 3D shapes that tau proteins form in different tau-related brain diseases. They will build computer algorithms from genetic and experimental data to predict how small sequence changes or mutations change tau folding and assembly. Laboratory tests will probe how specific local parts of the tau protein control its tendency to clump into disease-causing fibrils, and patient-derived samples will be compared to lab-made material. The goal is to link particular tau shapes to specific diagnoses so future tests could detect those shapes in living patients.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could enable tests that detect disease-specific tau shapes in living patients and improve early and more accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and related tauopathies.
How similar studies have gone: High-resolution cryo-EM has previously revealed distinct tau fibril structures from patient brains, so this project builds on proven structural methods while aiming to translate them toward diagnostic and predictive tools.
Where this research is happening
-
Ut Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Joachimiak, Lukasz a. — Ut Southwestern Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Joachimiak, Lukasz a.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.