Oligodendrocyte

A diet mimicking fasting alleviates MS symptoms – the ‘fast’ way to reduce the effects of autoimmunity. A discussion of the article ‘A Diet Mimicking Fasting Promotes Regeneration and Reduces Autoimmunity and Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms’ which was published in June 2016, by In Young Choi, Laura Piccio, Patra Childress, Friedemann Paul, Markus Bock, Valter D. Longo Abstract Choi et al. have found that participating in a diet mimicking fasting can promote regeneration of myelin and reduce autoimmunity

Researchers discovered that when oligodendrocytes in healthy individuals are damaged, the brain can produce new cells to repair the damaged ones. However, people with MS have trouble making new oligodendrocytes. Therefore, once an immune attack occurs, the brain is unable to provide a way to resolve the damages. One drug, called Guanabenz, kept oligodendrocytes alive, easing MS symptoms and slowing its progression. While still in trial phases, Guanabenz

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a degenerative and potentially debilitating disorder that affects the spinal cord and brain, collectively known as the central nervous system. Multiple sclerosis evolves gradually throughout time and is considered to be auto-immune, which means the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells and tissues that are supposed to be within the body. According to Medscape, symptoms consist of, but are not limited to, sexual problems, ataxia (the inability to control certain

behavioral capacity” (Myelinate). The article goes into depth about the different experiments that have gone on. For example, McKenzie et al. had done an experiment with adult mice to determine if there was a difference in mice that grew new oligodendrocytes. The article also went into great detail about different disorders caused by damaged or malfunctioned myelin. Myelin is truly important for our brains as it surrounds axon of some nerve cells and forming an insulating layer. On the other hand

whether HIF upregulation leads to a decrease in these marks of gene activation. I will perform chip-qPCR on material isolated from OPCs as well as mature oligodendrocytes from both control and VHL knockout cell lines. I will validate findings in the chemical-induced differentiation blocking system, by similarly testing material from OPCs and oligodendrocytes from both DMSO treated and CoCl2 or DMOG treated cells. Treatment with HDAC inhibitors has been shown to

In the central nervous system, neurons, microglia, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes secrete exosomes into the extracellular environment (Glebov 2015), raising the possibility that communication mediated via extracellular vesicles is a common mechanism in the CNS. It has been reported that exosomes are involved in the normal development and physiology of the nervous system. One study demonstrated that mature hippocampal and cortical neurons released exosomes in response to calcium and glutamatergic

Myelin is a fatty sheath that coats nerve cells. It consists of about 70% lipids. In the central nervous system, it is made of oligodendrocytes. One oligodendrocyte can myelinate many axons. In the peripheral nervous system, myelin is made of a Schwann cell. One Schwann cell can myelinate only one axon. Oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells form myelin by wrapping around the axon. The myelin sheath is a good insulator. It also creates low capacitance. This means that fewer ions are needed to charge

conduction. Myelination begins in the late fetal period and continues for at least 20 years during the life of each individual. Its biosynthetic pathway occurs mainly in oligodendrocytes for the CNS and in the Schwann cells for the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Fig. 4A. Myelin structure in the CNS. The image shows an oligodendrocyte and the myelin sheath. 4B. Molecular composition of myelin in the CNS, in which proteins (20%) and lipids (80%) are organized in a multilayer membrane. Protein are in

impulses. Recent research has indicated that the cells in the brain responsible for making myelin sheaths, known as oligodendrocytes, cannot properly complete this critical developmental task. Myelin sheaths are the fatty covering that act as insulators around nerve fibres in the brain, as well as providing nutritional support for nerve cells. In Canavan disease, many oligodendrocytes do not mature and instead die, leaving nerve

the associated nearby neuron itself to "insulate" them via the myelin sheath. To differentiate via light microscopy, you would look for the classic myelin sheath (which due to its high fat content can be stained for easily) to distinguish an oligodendrocyte from the many surrounding astrocytes. For electron microscopy, you can easily see the shape of the cells so you can then make distinctions based on how the processes are shaped and where they interact with