期刊名称:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
印刷版ISSN:0027-8424
电子版ISSN:1091-6490
出版年度:2008
卷号:105
期号:38
页码:14662-14667
DOI:10.1073/pnas.0805640105
语种:English
出版社:The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
摘要:The oligodendrocyte precursor cell (OPC) arises from the subventricular zone (SVZ) during early vertebrate development to migrate and proliferate along axon tracts before differentiating into the myelin-forming oligodendrocyte. We demonstrate that the spatial and temporal regulation of oligodendrocyte differentiation depends intimately on the axonal microenvironment and the density of precursor cells along a specified axonal area. Differentiation does not require dynamic axonal signaling, but instead is induced by packing constraints resulting from intercellular interactions. Schwann cells and even artificial beads bound to the axonal surface can mimic these constraints and promote differentiation. Together, these results describe the coordinately controlled biophysical interaction of oligodendrocyte precursors within an axonal niche leading to self-renewal and differentiation.