beta-amyloid

noun

be·​ta-am·​y·​loid ˈbā-tə-ˈa-mə-ˌlȯid 

variants or beta-amyloid protein or beta-amyloid peptide

: an amyloid that is derived from a larger precursor protein and is the primary component of plaques characteristic of Alzheimer's disease

… beta-amyloid is the main component of the plaques, or brain lesions, found in the estimated 4 million Americans afflicted with Alzheimer's disease.

—Discover

… researchers in California have created mice carrying the gene for beta-amyloid protein, the principal component of the plaques riddling the brains of people with Alzheimer's.

—Charlene Crabb

… he never underwent an autopsy that would have shown unequivocally whether the gummy mess of beta-amyloid plaques that is the telltale symptom of Alzheimer's had infected his brain.

—Michael Greenberg

called also A-beta, amyloid beta, amyloid beta peptide, amyloid beta protein

Examples of beta-amyloid in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The test works by measuring proteins beta-amyloid and p-tau217, which are believed to be hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. —Vanessa Etienne, People.com, 21 May 2025

Both drugs clear the brain of a substance called beta-amyloid, which forms the sticky plaques associated with Alzheimer's. —Jon Hamilton, NPR, 26 Feb. 2025

Luchsinger-Stuart said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. raised questions about Alzheimer's researchers' focus on beta-amyloid as the cause of the mind-robbing disease. —Ken Alltucker, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025

Right now, doctors rely on brain scans called PET scans to find amyloid plaques or do a spinal tap to check for abnormal levels of proteins like beta-amyloid and tau. —Allen Chang, ABC News, 29 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1987, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for beta-amyloid

• corticosteroid
• adenoid
• alkaloid
• amoeboid
• amyloid
• aneroid
• anthropoid
• arachnoid
• asteroid
• benzenoid
• carcinoid
• celluloid

Medical Definition

beta-amyloid

noun

be·​ta-am·​y·​loid

variants also β-amyloid

-ˈam-ə-ˌlȯid 

or beta-amyloid protein or beta-amyloid peptide

: an amyloid that is derived from amyloid precursor protein and is the primary component of plaques characteristic of Alzheimer's disease

called also A-beta, amyloid beta, amyloid beta peptide, amyloid beta protein