J Neurosci Res 2001 Aug 15;65(4):308-17
Solanky M, Maeda Y, Ming X, Husar
W, Li W, Cook S, Dowling P
The proliferation marker Ki-67 labels
cell nuclei in the G(1), S, M, and G(2) phases of the cell cycle.
We used Ki-67 immunohistochemistry
to quantify proliferating glial cells in brain tissue sections from twenty-four
patients, comprised of multiple sclerosis, normal brains, and other neurological
disease controls.
Glial proliferation was greatly increased
in MS lesions when compared with control brain white matter.
Both actively demyelinating/early
remyelinating plaques and chronic inactive plaques of long standing often
displayed large numbers of glial cells in the proliferative cycle.
The bulk of these proliferating cells
were of oligodendroglial lineage in the MS plaques.
Ki-67 positive macrophage/microglial
lineage cells were largely restricted to acute lesions.
The finding of increased numbers
of proliferating oligodendroglia in most MS plaques, regardless of disease
duration or activity state, indicates that the MS brain is capable of recruiting
unexpectedly large numbers of new oligodendrocytes over long periods of
time.
The factors within the MS plaque
microenvironment that provoke new oligodendrocyte generation and their
subsequent loss still need to be identified.
Copyright 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
PMID: 11494366, UI: 21385484
Neurology Service, Department of
Veterans Affairs, New Jersey Health Care System, East Orange, New Jersey.