Highly sensitive amyloid detection enabled by thioflavin T dimers

Abstract

Fluorescent molecules that specifically target amyloid structures are highly desirable for amyloid research. Herein, we show a dimeric design of thioflavin T improves its binding affinity to Aβ amyloid by up to 70 fold, while not sacrificing the specificity and the “light-up” feature upon amyloid binding.