tau

[ tou, taw tahv, tawv ]

noun

1. the 19th letter of the Greek alphabet (T, τ ).
2. the consonant sound represented by this letter.
3. tav.
4. Also tau·on []. Physics. tau lepton.
5. Also called tau protein. Biochemistry. a protein that is an important component of nerve cells, helping to maintain their function and structure: in the brain, distortions in the protein’s molecular shape is associated with the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.

tau

/ taʊ; tɔː /

noun

1. the 19th letter in the Greek alphabet (Τ, τ), a consonant, transliterated as t

Word History and Origins

Origin of tau¹

1250–1300; Middle English < Latin < Greek taû < Semitic; tav

Word History and Origins

Origin of tau¹

C13: via Latin from Greek, of Semitic origin; see tav

Example Sentences

When Samoa's rugby league team performed a traditional war dance, the Siva Tau, before their first Test against England last Sunday, the players became involved in an intense standoff.

From BBC

"It is well known that tau and TDP-43 proteins play key roles in FTD, ALS and PSP, as they form abnormal aggregates in the brain in these diseases. The events differ between the diseases, however. Our investigations suggest that blood levels of the proteins reflect these disease processes," says Schneider.

From Science Daily

"We have found that the combination of both markers is required for the diagnosis of behavioural FTD, respectively its subtypes, whereas TDP-43 is sufficient for ALS and the tau protein for PSP. However, for the tau marker, we are actually looking at two specific variants, so called isoforms, of the tau protein."

From Science Daily

Such measurements turned out to be inconclusive, especially because tau proteins free-floating in blood are usually fragmented.

From Science Daily

Instead, Schneider and colleagues determined the levels of two forms of tau proteins and those of TDP-43 proteins found inside so-called vesicles.

From Science Daily