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The insulation must be proportional to the diameter of the fibre inside. The optimal ratio of axon diameter divided by the total fiber diameter (which includes the myelin) is 0.6. [24] Oligodendrocytes in rat cerebellum stained with antibody to myelin basic protein in red and for DNA in blue. Two oligodendrocyte cell bodies are clearly visible ...
Myelin (/ ˈ m aɪ. ə l ɪ n / MY-ə-lin) is a lipid-rich material that surrounds nerve cell axons to insulate them and increase the rate at which electrical impulses (called action potentials) pass along the axon. [1] [2] The myelinated axon can be likened to an electrical wire (the axon) with insulating material (myelin) around it. However ...
Myelin is formed by oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system and Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system.Therefore, the first stage of myelinogenesis is often defined as the differentiation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) or Schwann cell progenitors into their mature counterparts, [4] followed by myelin formation around axons.
Oligodendrocytes are found in the CNS and resemble an octopus: they have bulbous cell bodies with up to fifteen arm-like processes. Each process reaches out to an axon and spirals around it, creating a myelin sheath. The myelin sheath insulates the nerve fiber from the extracellular fluid and speeds up signal conduction along the nerve fiber. [34]
Myelin basic protein (MBP) is a protein believed [weasel words] to be important in the process of myelination of nerves in the nervous system. The myelin sheath is a multi-layered membrane, unique to the nervous system, that functions as an insulator to greatly increase the velocity of axonal impulse conduction . [ 5 ]
In vitro, oligodendrocytes create an extensive network of myelin-like sheets. The process of differentiation can be observed both through morphological changes and cell surface markers specific to the discrete stage of differentiation, though the signals for differentiation are unknown. [ 36 ]
Grey matter, or gray matter in American English, is a major component of the central nervous system, consisting of neuronal cell bodies, neuropil (dendrites and unmyelinated axons), glial cells (astrocytes and oligodendrocytes), synapses, and capillaries.
Schwann cells or neurolemmocytes (named after German physiologist Theodor Schwann) are the principal glia of the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Glial cells function to support neurons and in the PNS, also include satellite cells, olfactory ensheathing cells, enteric glia and glia that reside at sensory nerve endings, such as the Pacinian corpuscle.