# Amyloid and tau cascade (simplified)

Source: https://onco.cc/pathways/da-pathway-amyloid-tau/  
OnCo record `da-pathway-amyloid-tau` (Pathway). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A simplified drawing of how amyloid and tau are often described in Alzheimer’s disease. Real brains are messier, and mixed pathology is common.

## Summary

The cascade is a research frame: amyloid accumulation, then tau spread, then synaptic failure. Antibodies act on amyloid. Tau drugs are mostly still in trials. Vascular and Lewy pathology can sit on the same diagram in a real person.

## Fields

- Kind: Pathway
- Last checked: 2026-09-21
- Tags: dementia-atlas
- Analogy: Think of amyloid as clutter that builds up first, and tau as the wiring that fails later. The drawing is a teaching sketch, not a complete biology textbook.
- Interventions: Anti-amyloid antibodies act at plaques.; Cholinesterase inhibitors act later, on signalling, not on this cascade.

## Sources

- NIA: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/alzheimers-and-dementia

## Connected records

- diagnoses: [Alzheimer’s disease](https://onco.cc/diagnoses/alzheimers-disease/)
- targets: [Amyloid-beta](https://onco.cc/targets/da-target-amyloid-beta/), [Tau](https://onco.cc/targets/da-target-tau/)

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