Drusen deposits associated with aging and age-related macular degeneration contain nonfibrillar amyloid oligomers
J. Clin. Invest. Volker Luibl, et al. 116:378 doi:10.1172/JCI25843 [Go to this article.]

Figure 4
Morphology of amyloid oligomer cores in drusen at higher magnification. (A–C) Confocal micrographs of drusen. Amyloid oligomer cores are labeled with fluorescein (green), and lipofuscin autofluorescence in the RPE is visualized in red (Cy3 channel). (A) Amyloid oligomer cores seemed to consist of an aggregate of small vesicular structures (arrowheads) that increased in density toward the center. (B) Some of these vesicular structures appeared to extend toward the RPE with diminishing density (arrowheads). (C) Occasionally, the amyloid oligomer cores penetrated through the Bm and extended toward the choroid (arrowhead). (D) Ultrastructure of an amyloid oligomer core is depicted in an immunogold-labeled electron micrograph (inset), wherein gold particles decorate vesicular structures that are heterogeneous in size. The highest density of gold particles seen in D was from the region above the Bm (rectangle). Scale bars: 100 nm (D, inset). Magnification, ×3,000 (A), ×2,000 (B–D).