A new study from Small’s laboratory found that, in many patients, tau secretion arises from tiny malfunctioning compartments inside the brain’s neurons, suggesting that these malfunctional compartments are commonly involved in the appearance of Alzheimer’s disease.

These tiny compartments, called endosomes, function as a ‘grand central station’ and traffic proteins throughout a cell. The new study provides evidence that endosomal trafficking is disrupted in about 70% of the patients it examined, including those only displaying the first signs of Alzheimer’s.