Nanoscale imaging of neurotoxic proteins

The misfolding and self-assembly of intrinsically disordered proteins into insoluble amyloid structures is central to many neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases. Optical imaging of this self-assembly process in vitro and in cells is revolutionising our understanding of the molecular mechanisms behind these devastating diseases. In contrast to conventional biophysical methods, optical imaging, and in particular optical super-resolution imaging, permit the dynamic investigation of the molecular self-assembly process in vitro and in cells, at molecular level resolution. In this article, current state-of-the-art imaging methods are reviewed and discussed in the context of research into neurodegeneration.