Protamine neutralizes chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan-mediated inhibition of oligodendrocyte differentiation

Chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs), which are enriched in demyelinating plaques in neurodegenerative diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), impair remyelination by inhibiting the migration and differentiation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) in the central nervous system (CNS). We herein show that protamine (PRM, also known as a heparin antagonist) effectively neutralizes the inhibitory activities of CSPGs, thereby enhancing OPC differentiation and (re)myelination in mice. Cell-based assays using mouse OPC-like OL1 cells revealed that the PRM treatment exerted masking effects on extracellular CSPGs and improved oligodendrocyte differentiation on inhibitory CSPG-coated substrates. PRM also bound to the extracellular region of protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type Z (PTPRZ), a membrane-spanning CSPG predominantly expressed in OPCs, and functioned as a ligand mimetic of PTPRZ, thereby suppressing its negative regulatory activity on oligodendrocyte differentiation. In primary cultures, the differentiation of OPCs from wild-type and Ptprz-deficient mice was equally enhanced by PRM. Moreover, the intranasal administration of PRM accelerated myelination in the developing mouse brain, and its intracerebroventricular administration stimulated remyelination after cuprizone-induced demyelination. These results indicate that PRM has CSPG-neutralizing activity which promotes oligodendrocyte differentiation under developmental and morbid conditions.