Alpha-synuclein in alpha-helical conformation at air-water interface: implication of conformation and orientation changes during its accumulation/aggregation.

Alpha-synuclein, a natively unstructured protein important in the neuropathology of Parkinson's disease, was found to form a Langmuir monolayer in an alpha-helical conformation with its helical axis parallel to the air-water interface. This study sheds light on the role of vesicles in neuronal cells in the accumulation/aggregation of alpha-synuclein.