Unexpected Synergy: Macrophages and Schwann Cells Modulate Pathology in a Newborn Disease through a Shared Substrate

Abstract

Krabbe disease is characterized by GALC deficiency and Schwann cell impairment. In a recent issue of Neuron, Weinstock etal. (2020) show that hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, an established therapy, improves pathology in a mouse model through an unexpected GALC-dependent mechanism, i.e., by providing functional macrophages capable of phagocytosis, rather than by supplying GALC for Schwann cell function.