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Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Generation of Oligodendrocytes and Oligodendrocyte-Conditioned Medium for Co-Culture Experiments
Published on: February 9, 2020
Oligodendrocytes: biology and pathology
1Department of Neuroimmunology, Center for Brain Research, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria. monika.bradl@meduniwien.ac.at
Abstract:
Oligodendrocytes are the myelinating cells of the central nervous system (CNS). They are the end product of a cell lineage which has to undergo a complex and precisely timed program of proliferation, migration, differentiation, and myelination to finally produce the insulating sheath of axons. Due to this complex differentiation program, and due to their unique metabolism/physiology, oligodendrocytes count among the most vulnerable cells of the CNS. In this review, we first describe the different steps eventually culminating in the formation of mature oligodendrocytes and myelin sheaths, as they were revealed by studies in rodents. We will then show differences and similarities of human oligodendrocyte development. Finally, we will lay out the different pathways leading to oligodendrocyte and myelin loss in human CNS diseases, and we will reveal the different principles leading to the restoration of myelin sheaths or to a failure to do so.
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