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Teasing of Ventral Spinal Cord White Matter Fibers for the Analysis of Central Nervous System Nodes of Ranvier

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Oligodendrocytes

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1936))

Abstract

In the central nervous system, the formation of nodes of Ranvier, the short, unmyelinated regions of the axon where voltage-gated sodium channels that mediate saltatory conduction in myelinated nerves are concentrated, is orchestrated by oligodendrocytes, the myelinating cells of the CNS. While transmission electron microscopy remains the gold standard for the study of how the nodal region is organized, this approach is both technically demanding and time-consuming. The availability of antibodies that can be used to label paranodal myelin and the underlying axonal domains that are formed as a result of myelination allows for the precise analysis of the nodal region. In this chapter, we describe the method used to prepare teased fiber preparations of CNS white matter. Teased fiber preparations facilitate the rapid, quantitative analysis of a large number of nodes of Ranvier per animal compared to conventional histological approaches.

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Acknowledgments

A.A.J. thanks the Wellcome Trust, Medical Research Council and UK Multiple Sclerosis Society for support (grants to Charles ffrench-Constant). D.L.S. thanks the Wellcome Trust (grant to Peter Brophy) and Medical Research council for support (grant to Peter Brophy and DLS). Many thanks to Peter Brophy and Charles ffrench-Constant for their helpful comments on this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine and MS Society Edinburgh Centre, Edinburgh bioQuarter, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

    Andrew A. Jarjour

  2. Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The Chancellor’s Building, Edinburgh bioQuarter, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

    Diane L. Sherman

Authors
  1. Andrew A. Jarjour
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  2. Diane L. Sherman
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Correspondence to Andrew A. Jarjour .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

    David A. Lyons

  2. Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

    Linde Kegel

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Jarjour, A.A., Sherman, D.L. (2019). Teasing of Ventral Spinal Cord White Matter Fibers for the Analysis of Central Nervous System Nodes of Ranvier. In: Lyons, D., Kegel, L. (eds) Oligodendrocytes. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1936. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9072-6_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9072-6_8

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-9070-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-9072-6

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