Abstract
Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) account for 5% of the resident parenchymal central nervous system glial cells. OPCs are not only a back-up for the loss of oligodendrocytes that occurs due to brain injury or inflammation-induced demyelination (remyelination) but are also pivotal in plastic processes such as learning and memory (adaptive myelination). OPC differentiation into mature myelinating oligodendrocytes is controlled by a complex transcriptional network and depends on high metabolic and mitochondrial demand. Mounting evidence shows that OPC dysfunction, culminating in the lack of OPC differentiation, mediates the progression of neurodegenerative disorders such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. Importantly, neurodegeneration is characterised by oxidative and carbonyl stress, which may primarily affect OPC plasticity due to the high metabolic demand and a limited antioxidant capacity associated with this cell type. The underlying mechanisms of how oxidative/carbonyl stress disrupt OPC differentiation remain enigmatic and a focus of current research efforts. This review proposes a role for oxidative/carbonyl stress in interfering with the transcriptional and metabolic changes required for OPC differentiation. In particular, oligodendrocyte (epi)genetics, cellular defence and repair responses, mitochondrial signalling and respiration, and lipid metabolism represent key mechanisms how oxidative/carbonyl stress may hamper OPC differentiation in neurodegenerative disorders. Understanding how oxidative/carbonyl stress impacts OPC function may pave the way for future OPC-targeted treatment strategies in neurodegenerative disorders.
Highlights
Upon differentiation-inducing stimuli, oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) provide the source of newly born oligodendrocytes for the myelination of neuronal axons in the central nervous system (CNS)
Remain: what are the mechanisms that give rise to OPC dysfunction? How does this dysfunction affectmyelination and the neurophysiological and functional outcomes? At what disease stage and in what cellular environments can OPC dysfunction be effectively targeted therapeutically? In the present review, we focus on the effect of elevated oxidative stress, a common physiological phenomenon observed in ageing, neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration, on OPC differentiation
Whereas high levels of oxidised lipids, protein and DNA are often found in different CNS cells, cerebrospinal fluid or plasma, mostly paralleled by reductions in the antioxidant defence, oligodendrocytes and OPCs show the greatest levels of oxidative damage [89, 159–164]
Summary
Jan Spaas1,2,3 · Lieve van Veggel1,2,4 · Melissa Schepers1,2,4 · Assia Tiane1,2,4 · Jack van Horssen1,2,5 · David M. Moya6 · Elisabeth Piccart1,2 · Niels Hellings1,2 · Bert O. Eijnde1,2,7 · Wim Derave3 · Rudy Schreiber4 · Tim Vanmierlo
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