Database of Peptides Susceptible to Aggregation as a Tool for Studying Mechanisms of Diseases of Civilization

We introduce a database containing peptides related to diseases arising from protein aggregation. The general database AmyLoad includes all experimentally studied protein fragments that could be involved in erroneous protein folding, leading to amyloid formation. The database has been extended since its first release with regard to new instances of peptides or their fragments. Moreover, information of related diseases has been added to all entries, whenever available. Currently the database includes all available peptides tested for their potential amyloid properties, obtained from diverse resources, creating the largest dataset available at one place. This enables comparison between properties of amyloid and non-amyloid peptides. We could also select candidates for the most pathogenic peptides, involved in several diseases related to protein aggregation. We also discuss a need for sub-databases of different structures, such as related to \(\beta \gamma \)-crystallins - a protein family occurring in the eye lens. Misfolding of these proteins may lead to various forms of cataract. Those freely available internet services can facilitate finding the link between a protein sequence, its propensity to aggregation and the resulting disease, as well as support research on their pharmacological treatment and prevention.