A general discovery in protein science in the past few decades has been the finding that a number of unrelated proteins and peptides all have a marked propensity to form amyloid fibrils in vivo and in vitro . These structures have become known as the pathological hallmark of some of the most prevalent neurodegenerative diseases. More recently, the process of amyloid formation has been demystified through a number of key mechanistic findings, some of which are highlighted in this themed collection.