title: Myelin repair: the role of stem and precursor cells in multiple sclerosis.
abstract: Multiple sclerosis is the most common potential cause of neurological disability in young adults. The disease has two distinct clinical phases, each reflecting a dominant role for separate pathological processes: inflammation drives activity during the relapsing-remitting stage and axon degeneration represents the principal substrate of progressive disability. Recent advances in disease-modifying treatments target only the inflammatory process. They are ineffective in the progressive stage, leaving the science of disease progression unsolved. Here, the requirement is for strategies that promote remyelination and prevent axonal loss. Pathological and experimental studies suggest that these processes are tightly linked, and that remyelination or myelin repair will both restore structure and protect axons. This review considers the basic and clinical biology of remyelination and the potential contribution of stem and precursor cells to enhance and supplement spontaneous remyelination.
authors.affiliation: Cambridge Centre for Brain Repair, University of Cambridge, Robinson Way, Cambridge CB2 2PY, UK. sc222@cam.ac.uk
authors.forename: Siddharthan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chandran
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hunt
authors.forename: Alexis
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Joannides
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Alastair
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Compston
authors.forename: Robin J M
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Franklin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003711:Demyelinating Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology*