title: Cerebral cortex demyelination and oligodendrocyte precursor response to experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.
abstract: Experimentally induced autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in mice provides an animal model that shares many features with human demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). To what extent the cerebral cortex is affected by the process of demyelination and how the corollary response of the oligodendrocyte lineage is explicated are still not completely known aspects of EAE. By performing a detailed in situ analysis of expression of myelin and oligodendrocyte markers we have identified areas of subpial demyelination in the cerebral cortex of animals with conventionally induced EAE conditions. On EAE-affected cerebral cortices, the distribution and relative abundance of cells of the oligodendrocyte lineage were assessed and compared with control mouse brains. The analysis demonstrated that A2B5(+) glial restricted progenitors (GRPs) and NG2(+)/PDGFR-α(+) oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) were increased in number during "early" disease, 20 days post MOG immunization, whereas in the "late" disease, 39 days post-immunization, they were strongly diminished, and there was an accompanying reduction in NG2(+)/O4(+) pre-oligodendrocytes and GST-π mature oligodendrocytes. These results, together with the observed steady-state amount of NG2(-)/O4(+) pre-myelinating oligodendrocytes, suggested that oligodendroglial precursors attempted to compensate for the progressive loss of myelin, although these cells appeared to fail to complete the last step of their differentiation program. Our findings confirm that this chronic model of EAE reproduces the features of neocortex pathology in progressive MS and suggest that, despite the proliferative response of the oligodendroglial precursors, the failure to accomplish final differentiation may be a key contributing factor to the impaired remyelination that characterizes these demyelinating conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Anatomy and Histology, University of Bari School of Medicine, Piazza Giulio Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy. f.girolamo@histology.uniba.it
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Girolamo
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ferrara
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Strippoli
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rizzi
authors.forename: Mariella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Errede
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Trojano
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Perris
authors.forename: Luisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Roncali
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Svelto
authors.forename: Tiziana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mennini
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Virgintino
mesh_terms: D053687:Adult Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D000818:Animals; D019070:Cell Lineage / Q000502:physiology; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000473:pathology*; D003711:Demyelinating Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009413:Nerve Fibers, Myelinated / Q000473:pathology; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D009836:Oligodendroglia / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins