Remyelination: a brief history

Abstract

Remyelination was first hypothesised to exist in humans by Otto Marburg, 1 Marburg O Die sogenannte “akute multiple Sklerose”. Franz Deuticke, Leipzig und Wien1906: 37 Google Scholar working at the University of Vienna (Vienna, Austria). He described, in 1906, shadow plaques (“markschattenregeneration”), which are now regarded as a pathognomonic neuropathology feature of demyelinated lesions in multiple sclerosis. From this first description, Marburg already questioned whether these shadow plaques were hallmarks of ongoing early demyelination or remyelination. Remyelination in multiple sclerosis: from basic science to clinical translationThe treatment of multiple sclerosis has been transformed by the successful development of immunotherapies that efficiently reduce disease activity and related clinical relapses during the relapsing-remitting phase of the disease. However, the prevention of disability progression, which is due to axonal and neuronal damage and loss, has yet to be achieved and is therapeutically challenging, particularly during the progressive phase of the disease. One strategy to counteract neurodegeneration is to promote neuroprotection by enhancing myelin regeneration, hence restoring nerve conduction and metabolic support to the axon. Full-Text PDF