Gold nanoclusters: new frontier for developing medication for treatment of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) as the major neurodegenerative disease afflicts over 50 million individuals worldwide without cure. Zhang et al. demonstrated that Au23(CR)14, a novel gold nanocluster modified with Cys-Arg (CR) dipeptide, inhibits the misfolding and fibrillation of amyloid-β (Aβ), fully restores the natural unfolded state of Aβ from misfolded β-sheets with abolished cytotoxicity, and more excitingly, dissolves endogenous Aβ plaques completely. This report opens a new frontier for developing medication for AD treatment.