Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in the elderly. The neuropathological hallmarks are neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques. The major protein component of the plaques is a 39-42 amino acid peptide (ß-amyloid/Aß). Aß occurs in two predominant forms with different COOH-termini, Aß 40 and Aß 42, and overproduction of Aß 42 has been suggested to be the cause of familial early-onset AD. Aß generation depends on proteolytic cleavage of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) by two unknown proteases: ß-secretase and gamma-secretase. Recent study suggested that a transmembrane aspartic protease, termed beta-site APP-cleaving enzyme (BACE), functionally acts as the ß-secretase. This antibody recognizes N-terminal of Aß 40 and Aß 42 specifically.Synonyms: Amyloid beta peptide