The logistics of myelin biogenesis in the central nervous system.
Rapid nerve conduction depends on myelin, but not all axons in the central nervous system (CNS) are myelinated to the same extent. Here, we review our current understanding of the biology of myelin biogenesis in the CNS. We focus on how the different steps of myelination are interconnected and how distinct patterns of myelin are generated. Possibly, a "basal" mode of myelination is laying the groundwork in areas devoted to basic homeostasis early in development, whereas a "targeted" mode generates myelin in regions controlling more complex tasks throughout adulthood. Such mechanisms may explain why myelination progresses in some areas according to a typical chronological and topographic sequence, while in other regions it is regulated by environmental stimuli contributing to interindividual variability of myelin structure. GLIA 2017;65:1021-1031.
Institute of Neuronal Cell Biology, Technical University Munich, Munich, 80805, Germany.
Nicolas
N
Snaidero
Institute of Neuronal Cell Biology, Technical University Munich, Munich, 80805, Germany.|German Center for Neurodegenerative Disease (DZNE), Munich, 6250, Germany.|Cellular Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Experimental Medicine, Göttingen, 37075, Germany.|Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich, 81377, Germany.
Mikael
M
Simons
D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009186:Myelin Sheath / Q000502:physiology*; D009836:Oligodendroglia
axons; differentiation; myelin; oligodendrocytes; proliferation