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NG2-glia as multipotent neural stem cells: Fact or fantasy?

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-17, 06:23 authored by Richardson, WD, Kaylene YoungKaylene Young, Tripathi, RB, McKenzie, I
Cycling glial precursors—‘‘NG2-glia’’—are abundant in the developing and mature central nervous system (CNS). During development, they generate oligodendrocytes. In culture, they can revert to a multipotent state, suggesting that they might have latent stem cell potential that could be harnessed to treat neurodegenerative disease. This hope has been subdued recently by a series of fate-mapping studies that cast NG2-glia as dedicated oligodendrocyte precursors in the healthy adult CNS—though rare, neuron production in the piriform cortex remains a possibility. Following CNS damage, the repertoire of NG2-glia expands to include Schwann cells and possibly astrocytes—but so far not neurons. This reaffirms the central role of NG2-glia in myelin repair. The realization that oligodendrocyte generation continues throughout normal adulthood has seeded the idea that myelin genesis might also be involved in neural plasticity. We review these developments, highlighting areas of current interest, contention, and speculation.

History

Publication title

Neuron

Volume

70

Issue

4

Pagination

661-673

ISSN

0896-6273

Department/School

Menzies Institute for Medical Research

Publisher

Cell Press

Place of publication

1100 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, USA, Ma, 02138

Rights statement

The definitive version is available at http://www.sciencedirect.com

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Expanding knowledge in the health sciences

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