Beta Amyloid toxicity in a Caenorhabditis elegans model of Alzheimer's disease

Transgenic animals were engineered to express human amyloid peptide controlled by a muscle-specific, heat-inducible promoter. At low temperatures (16C) Abeta expression is minimal, while at higher temperatures (20-25C) Abeta accummulates in large quantities and causes paralysis. GFP- and GFP::degron (a toxic aggregating GFP mutant)-expressing animals were used as controls.研究人员通过基因工程构建了转基因动物，使其表达受肌肉特异性热诱导启动子（muscle-specific, heat-inducible promoter）调控的人类淀粉样肽（amyloid peptide）。在低温（16℃）条件下，Abeta的表达量极低；而在高温（20-25℃）环境中，Abeta会大量积累并引发动物瘫痪。本研究设置了分别表达绿色荧光蛋白（Green Fluorescent Protein, GFP）与GFP::degron（一种携带降解子的毒性聚集型绿色荧光蛋白突变体）的转基因动物作为对照。