Amyloids — clumps of misfolded proteins found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders — are the quintessential bad boys of neurobiology. They’re thought to muck up the seamless workings of the neurons responsible for memory and movement, and researchers around the world have devoted themselves to devising ways of blocking their production or accumulation in humans. [1]

On the other hand another article reads: Tiny components of amyloid plaques, the notorious protein clumps found littering the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease, might fight inflammation. Researchers report that several of these sticky protein fragments, or peptides, glom onto inflammatory compounds and reverse paralysis in mice that have a condition similar to multiple sclerosis. A fragment of tau protein, which shows up in other brain deposits in Alzheimer’s patients, has a similar effect. [2]

Simple phrases hidding too many assumptions and complications…

What IS a disease? Are these proteins the CAUSE for the disease or just a RESULT of it? Where do we draw the line between “disease cause”, “symptoms” and “disease”? And what if one “disease” is the… “cure” for something else? Difficult stuff…