Spreading of pathological proteins through brain networks: a case study for Alzheimers disease

TL;DR

This paper uses network-based mathematical models to study how misfolded tau proteins spread in the brain during Alzheimer's disease, highlighting the importance of model choice for accurate simulation and validation.

Contribution

It compares different network models of protein spread and demonstrates the critical impact of model architecture on accurately replicating clinical data.

Findings

Certain models better replicate tau protein dynamics

Model architecture significantly influences simulation accuracy

Validation against clinical data is essential for model selection

Abstract

Mathematical modeling offers a valuable approach to understanding Alzheimers disease (AD) given its complexity, unknown causes, and lack of effective treatments. Models, once validated, offer a powerful tool to test medical hypotheses that are otherwise difficult to verify directly. Our focus here is on elucidating the spread of misfolded tau protein, a critical hallmark of AD alongside Abeta protein, taking also into account the synergistic interaction between the two proteins. We consider distinct modelling choices, all employing network frameworks for protein evolution, differentiated by their network architecture and diffusion operators. By carefully comparing these models against clinical tau concentration data, gathered through advanced multimodal analysis techniques, we show that certain models replicate better the proteins dynamics. This investigation underscores a crucial insight: in modeling complex pathologies, the precision with which the mathematical framework is chosen is crucial, especially when validation against clinical data is considered decisive.