Autophagy aids membrane expansion by neuropathic Schwann cells

Demyelinating peripheral neuropathies associated with abnormal expression of peripheral myelin protein 22 (PMP22) involve the formation of cytosolic protein aggregates within Schwann cells. Towards developing a therapy for these progressive neurodegenerative diseases, we assessed whether pharmacological activation of autophagy by rapamycin (RM) could prevent protein aggregation and enhance Schwann cell myelination. Indeed, we found that glial cells from neuropathic mice activate autophagy in response to RM and produce abundant myelin internodes. Lentivirus-mediated shRNA shutdown of Atg12 abrogates the improvements in myelin production, demonstrating that autophagy is critical for the observed benefits.