Age-associated decline in regeneration capacity limits the restoration of nervous system functionality after injury. In a model for demyelination, we found that old mice fail to resolve the ...inflammatory response initiated after myelin damage. Aged phagocytes accumulated excessive amounts of myelin debris, which triggered cholesterol crystal formation and phagolysosomal membrane rupture and stimulated inflammasomes. Myelin debris clearance required cholesterol transporters, including apolipoprotein E. Stimulation of reverse cholesterol transport was sufficient to restore the capacity of old mice to remyelinate lesioned tissue. Thus, cholesterol-rich myelin debris can overwhelm the efflux capacity of phagocytes, resulting in a phase transition of cholesterol into crystals and thereby inducing a maladaptive immune response that impedes tissue regeneration.
The repair of inflamed, demyelinated lesions as in multiple sclerosis (MS) necessitates the clearance of cholesterol-rich myelin debris by microglia/macrophages and the switch from a pro-inflammatory ...to an anti-inflammatory lesion environment. Subsequently, oligodendrocytes increase cholesterol levels as a prerequisite for synthesizing new myelin membranes. We hypothesized that lesion resolution is regulated by the fate of cholesterol from damaged myelin and oligodendroglial sterol synthesis. By integrating gene expression profiling, genetics and comprehensive phenotyping, we found that, paradoxically, sterol synthesis in myelin-phagocytosing microglia/macrophages determines the repair of acutely demyelinated lesions. Rather than producing cholesterol, microglia/macrophages synthesized desmosterol, the immediate cholesterol precursor. Desmosterol activated liver X receptor (LXR) signaling to resolve inflammation, creating a permissive environment for oligodendrocyte differentiation. Moreover, LXR target gene products facilitated the efflux of lipid and cholesterol from lipid-laden microglia/macrophages to support remyelination by oligodendrocytes. Consequently, pharmacological stimulation of sterol synthesis boosted the repair of demyelinated lesions, suggesting novel therapeutic strategies for myelin repair in MS.
Abstract
Myelinating oligodendrocytes enable fast propagation of action potentials along the ensheathed axons. In addition, oligodendrocytes play diverse non-canonical roles including axonal ...metabolic support and activity-dependent myelination. An open question remains whether myelination also contributes to information processing in addition to speeding up conduction velocity. Here, we analyze the role of myelin in auditory information processing using paradigms that are also good predictors of speech understanding in humans. We compare mice with different degrees of dysmyelination using acute multiunit recordings in the auditory cortex, in combination with behavioral readouts. We find complex alterations of neuronal responses that reflect fatigue and temporal acuity deficits. We observe partially discriminable but similar deficits in well myelinated mice in which glial cells cannot fully support axons metabolically. We suggest a model in which myelination contributes to sustained stimulus perception in temporally complex paradigms, with a role of metabolically active oligodendrocytes in cortical information processing.
Myelin, the electrically insulating sheath on axons, undergoes dynamic changes over time. However, it is composed of proteins with long lifetimes. This raises the question how such a stable structure ...is renewed. Here, we study the integrity of myelinated tracts after experimentally preventing the formation of new myelin in the CNS of adult mice, using an inducible Mbp null allele. Oligodendrocytes survive recombination, continue to express myelin genes, but they fail to maintain compacted myelin sheaths. Using 3D electron microscopy and mass spectrometry imaging we visualize myelin-like membranes failing to incorporate adaxonally, most prominently at juxta-paranodes. Myelinoid body formation indicates degradation of existing myelin at the abaxonal side and the inner tongue of the sheath. Thinning of compact myelin and shortening of internodes result in the loss of about 50% of myelin and axonal pathology within 20 weeks post recombination. In summary, our data suggest that functional axon-myelin units require the continuous incorporation of new myelin membranes.
Volume microscopy at high resolution is increasingly required to better understand cellular functions in the context of three-dimensional assemblies. Focused ion beam (FIB) milling for serial block ...face imaging in the scanning electron microscope (SEM) is an efficient and fast method to generate such volume data for 3D analysis. Here, we apply this technique at cryo-conditions to image fully hydrated frozen specimen of mouse optic nerves and Bacillus subtilis spores obtained by high-pressure freezing (HPF). We established imaging conditions to directly visualize the ultrastructure in the block face at −150°C by using an in-lens secondary electron (SE) detector. By serial sectioning with a focused ion beam and block face imaging of the optic nerve we obtained a volume as large as X=7.72μm, Y=5.79μm and Z=3.81μm with a lateral pixel size of 7.5nm and a slice thickness of 30nm in Z. The intrinsic contrast of membranes was sufficient to distinguish structures like Golgi cisternae, vesicles, endoplasmic reticulum and cristae within mitochondria and allowed for a three-dimensional reconstruction of different types of mitochondria within an oligodendrocyte and an astrocytic process. Applying this technique to dormant B. subtilis spores we obtained volumes containing numerous spores and discovered a bright signal in the core, which cannot be related to any known structure so far. In summary, we describe the use of cryo FIB-SEM as a tool for direct and fast 3D cryo-imaging of large native frozen samples including tissues.
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disorder in which remyelination failure contributes to persistent disability. Cholesterol is rate-limiting for myelin biogenesis in the ...developing CNS; however, whether cholesterol insufficiency contributes to remyelination failure in MS, is unclear. Here, we show the relationship between cholesterol, myelination and neurological parameters in mouse models of demyelination and remyelination. In the cuprizone model, acute disease reduces serum cholesterol levels that can be restored by dietary cholesterol. Concomitant with blood-brain barrier impairment, supplemented cholesterol directly supports oligodendrocyte precursor proliferation and differentiation, and restores the balance of growth factors, creating a permissive environment for repair. This leads to attenuated axon damage, enhanced remyelination and improved motor learning. Remarkably, in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, cholesterol supplementation does not exacerbate disease expression. These findings emphasize the safety of dietary cholesterol in inflammatory diseases and point to a previously unrecognized role of cholesterol in promoting repair after demyelinating episodes.
The mechanisms by which astrocytes modulate neural homeostasis, synaptic plasticity, and memory are still poorly explored. Astrocytes form large intercellular networks by gap junction coupling, ...mainly composed of two gap junction channel proteins, connexin 30 (Cx30) and connexin 43 (Cx43). To circumvent developmental perturbations and to test whether astrocytic gap junction coupling is required for hippocampal neural circuit function and behavior, we generate and study inducible, astrocyte-specific Cx30 and Cx43 double knockouts. Surprisingly, disrupting astrocytic coupling in adult mice results in broad activation of astrocytes and microglia, without obvious signs of pathology. We show that hippocampal CA1 neuron excitability, excitatory synaptic transmission, and long-term potentiation are significantly affected. Moreover, behavioral inspection reveals deficits in sensorimotor performance and a complete lack of spatial learning and memory. Together, our findings establish that astrocytic connexins and an intact astroglial network in the adult brain are vital for neural homeostasis, plasticity, and spatial cognition.
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•Inducible deletion of Cx30 and Cx43 disrupts astrocytic coupling in adult mice•Loss of astrocytic connexins and coupling activate astrocytes and microglia•Astroglial networks control hippocampal synaptic transmission and plasticity•Disrupting astroglial coupling impairs spatial learning and memory
Astrocytes form large intercellular networks by gap junction coupling, but the functional importance of astrocytic coupling in adult mice remains poorly explored. Hösli et al. report that astroglial networks in the adult brain are vital for neural homeostasis, hippocampal plasticity, and spatial cognition.
Mechanisms underlying central neuropathic pain are poorly understood. Although glial dysfunction has been functionally linked with neuropathic pain, very little is known about modulation of pain by ...oligodendrocytes. Here we report that genetic ablation of oligodendrocytes rapidly triggers a pattern of sensory changes that closely resemble central neuropathic pain, which are manifest before overt demyelination. Primary oligodendrocyte loss is not associated with autoreactive T- and B-cell infiltration in the spinal cord and neither activation of microglia nor reactive astrogliosis contribute functionally to central pain evoked by ablation of oligodendrocytes. Instead, light and electron microscopic analyses reveal axonal pathology in the spinal dorsal horn and spinothalamic tract concurrent with the induction and maintenance of nociceptive hypersensitivity. These data reveal a role for oligodendrocytes in modulating pain and suggest that perturbation of oligodendrocyte functions that maintain axonal integrity can lead to central neuropathic pain independent of immune contributions.
Breakdown of myelin sheaths is a pathological hallmark of several autoimmune diseases of the nervous system. We employed autoantibody-mediated animal models of demyelinating diseases, including a rat ...model of neuromyelitis optica (NMO), to target myelin and found that myelin lamellae are broken down into vesicular structures at the innermost region of the myelin sheath. We demonstrated that myelin basic proteins (MBP), which form a polymer in between the myelin membrane layers, are targeted in these models. Elevation of intracellular Ca2+ levels resulted in MBP network disassembly and myelin vesiculation. We propose that the aberrant phase transition of MBP molecules from their cohesive to soluble and non-adhesive state is a mechanism triggering myelin breakdown in NMO and possibly in other demyelinating diseases.
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•Characterization of myelin sheath pathology close its native state•Vesiculation of inner sheath layers is a common feature of myelin pathology•Loss of MBP function triggers myelin vesiculation•Elevation of intracellular Ca2+ triggers MBP phase transition
Using high-pressure freezing and electron microscopy, Weil et al. show that that the vesicular disruption of the myelin sheath is a common feature of myelin degeneration in demyelinating diseases. The authors suggest that the underlying mechanism is the aberrant transition of MBP molecules from their cohesive state to their non-adhesive state.
Oligodendrocytes facilitate rapid impulse propagation along the axons they myelinate and support their long-term integrity. However, the functional relevance of many myelin proteins has remained ...unknown. Here, we find that expression of the tetraspan-transmembrane protein CMTM5 (chemokine-like factor-like MARVEL-transmembrane domain containing protein 5) is highly enriched in oligodendrocytes and central nervous system (CNS) myelin. Genetic disruption of the
gene in oligodendrocytes of mice does not impair the development or ultrastructure of CNS myelin. However, oligodendroglial
deficiency causes an early-onset progressive axonopathy, which we also observe in global and tamoxifen-induced oligodendroglial
mutants. Presence of the
mutation ameliorates the axonopathy, implying a Wallerian degeneration-like pathomechanism. These results indicate that CMTM5 is involved in the function of oligodendrocytes to maintain axonal integrity rather than myelin biogenesis.
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