Remyelination during optic nerve compression

doi:10.1016/0022-510X(80)90082-9

Journal of the Neurological Sciences

Volume 46, Issue 2, May 1980, Pages 239-243

https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-510X(80)90082-9 Get rights and content

Abstract

The structural changes produced in cat optic nerve by incremental chronic compression have been investigated by light and electron microscopy. Within the first week extensive demyelination occurred; some fibres underwent Wallerian degeneration and there was marked proliferation of astrocytic processes. After 5 weeks of compression remyelinated fibres were seen and occurred in all longer-term animals despite the maintenance of compression, but some partially and completely demyelinated fibres persisted. Myelin thickness had not returned to normal in the remyelinated fibres after 19 weeks and was often strikingly variable. The significance of these observations is discussed in the light of the recent demonstration of the restoration of central conduction by remyelination.

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Cited by (61)

Myelination of regenerating optic nerve axons occurs in conjunction with an increase of the oligodendrocyte precursor cell population in the adult mice
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Higher magnification of Regenerating group showed a diverse spectrum of myelination pattern, presenting properly myelinated fibers (green arrows), thinly myelinated fibers (orange arrows) and unmyelinated fibers (blue arrows) (Fig. 1C). This feature of different stages of myelination is compatible with the remyelination phenomenon that follows mild compression or galactocerebroside antiserum local injection within the cat optic nerve (Clifford-Jones et al., 1980; Carroll et al., 1990). To investigate the amount of oligodendroglia within the regenerating optic nerve, we performed immunohistochemistry against the transcription factor SOX10, since it is expressed in early OPC and retains its expression until full development into mature oligodendrocytes (Bergles and Richardson, 2015).
Recently, regeneration of CNS tracts has been partially accomplished by strategies of intrinsic neuronal growth stimulation. However, restoration of function is dependent on proper myelination of regenerating axons. Previous work from our group (Goulart et al., 2018) has shown an increase in oligodendrocyte staining in the regenerating optic nerve, 2 weeks after crush, in animals that were submitted to conditional deletion of pten gene in retinal ganglion cells and intravitreal injection of zymosan + cAMP. Thus, in the present study we aimed to investigate the maturation of the oligodendroglial lineage and myelination during the regeneration of the optic nerve under the same conditions of our previous work. We showed that the combined treatment promoted an increase of myelinated fibers within the optic nerve, 12 weeks after lesion, as well as an increase in Sox10 positive cells. Early-OPCs, positive to A2B5, were also increased at 12 weeks, whereas O4 positive, late-OPCs, were increased from 2 until 12 weeks after crush. At 12 weeks after crush, the optic nerve of Regenerating group presented more CC1 positive oligodendrocytes and increased MRF positive myelinating oligodendrocytes, culminating in CTB traced regenerating axons superimposed to MBP staining, suggestive of myelination. Thus, our work showed that conditional deletion of pten gene in retinal ganglion cells and intravitreal inflammatory stimuli + cAMP stimulate full maturation of the olidodendroglial lineage, from OPC proliferation and differentiation to myelination of regenerating CNS axons.
Visual loss and recovery in chiasmal compression
2019, Progress in Retinal and Eye Research
Citation Excerpt :
One explanation for this is that the optic nerves may adapt to chronic compression by remyelination, giving rise to varying ratios of demyelinated and remyelinated fibers within a compressed nerve. In a feline model of optic nerve compression, remyelination occurred in the presence of the causative compressive lesion, restoring conduction to some extent (Clifford-Jones et al., 1980, 1985). In their model, the compressed nerves were composed of a mixture of demyelinated, partially demyelinated and remyelinated fibers after three weeks of compression.
Compression of the optic chiasm causes an optic neuropathy that may be associated with reversible visual loss often immediately following surgical decompression. While the precise pathogenesis of retinal ganglion cell impairment and eventual death remains poorly understood, a number of putative mechanisms may play a role. In this article we review the evidence supporting various stages of visual loss and recovery in chiasmal compression. These include conduction block, demyelination, ischemic insult, and retrograde and anterograde degeneration. We also describe novel advances in magnetic resonance imaging with specialized modalities such as diffusion tensor imaging have provided further information to explain the underlying mechanism of visual loss. Functional measures including electrophysiology are time-consuming but have shown moderate prognostic ability. Optical coherence tomography has provided novel new biomarkers for predicting outcome following surgical decompression. Both retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and ganglion cell complex thicknesses have shown to have excellent predictive power. Such advances serve to inform patients and clinicians of pre-operative factors that predict the extent of visual recovery following medical or surgical treatment of para-chiasmal lesions.
Visual Outcome of an Endoscopic Endonasal Transsphenoidal Approach in Pituitary Macroadenomas: Quantitative Assessment with Diffusion Tensor Imaging Early and Long-Term Results
2018, World Neurosurgery
Citation Excerpt :
Statistical analysis among recovery groups and measurement time are given in Table 4. Pituitary macroadenomas may compress anterior visual pathways and cause visual impairment.11,13,14,17,18,23 There are conflicting reports in the literature that have shown few parameters to be predictive, including preoperative degree of visual loss, duration of symptoms, and size of tumor, which have been correlated with the postoperative recovery course.
Postoperative visual recovery in patients with pituitary adenoma can be influenced by the duration of symptoms, age, and tumor volume. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) allows visualization of white matter structure along with quantitative information. The aims of our study were to predict the visual recovery process in the early and long-term periods and to define the parameters affecting the recovery course.
A total of 200 patients with pituitary macroadenomas underwent endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery between January 2009 and July 2016. DTI and visual analysis including visual acuity and visual field analyses were performed for these patients at 5 periods, which included 3 years of follow-up. The effects of age, duration of symptoms, and tumor volume on visual recovery were evaluated.
Mean tumor volume was calculated as 8871 ± 2758 mm³ and mean symptom duration was 23.41 ± 3.72 weeks. Mean age of the patients was 43.8 ± 8.9 years in the full recovery group and 48.7 ± 15.1 years in the nonrecovery group. Visual field analysis results on a Humphrey visual chart showed a significant linear strong correlation with fractional anisotropy (FA) values and a reverse strong correlation with mean diffusivity (MD) values on DTI magnetic resonance. DTI FA and MD cutoff values for each group were respectively determined as 0.373 and 1386 (×10^–6 mm²/second) for the preoperative period, 0.423 and 1383 (×10^–6 mm²/second) for the initial period, 0.428 and 1265 (×10^–6 mm²/second) for the early period, 0.432 and 1238 (×10^–6 mm²/second) for the intermediate period, and 0.437 and 1198 (×10^–6 mm²/second) for the late period.
DTI can assess and predict visual recovery after endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery of patients with pituitary macroadenomas causing chiasmal compression. FA values lower than or MD values greater than the cutoff values of the specific period reflect poor prognosis. Tumor volume was found to be the featured parameter that affects visual recovery. The postoperative first year is the most prominent interval evaluating the prognosis of visual recovery.
Decision Making for Patients with Concomitant Pituitary Macroadenoma and Ophthalmologic Comorbidity: A Clinical Controversy
2015, World Neurosurgery
Coexisting complex visual field defects and serious ophthalmologic comorbidities make the management of the pituitary macroadenomas more challenging. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) magnetic resonance imaging that tracks neural fibers in the white matter has been used recently to visualize the impact of different pathologies on cranial nerves. This study explains application of anterior optic pathway tractography for patients with ophthalmologic comorbidities and pituitary adenoma.
Two patients with atypical visual field defects caused by nonfunctional pituitary macroadenoma and simultaneous ophthalmologic morbidities (one glaucoma and the other giant cell arteritis) were selected for surgical decompression of the anterior optic apparatus. Standard perimetry and optic pathway DTI were done preoperatively, intraoperatively, and 3 months after surgery.
The nontypical pattern of visual field defect could not differentiate between the ophthalmologic disease and the chiasmatic compression attributable to pituitary macroadenoma as the main cause. Preoperative visual pathway DTI tractography showed lack of decussating chiasmatic fibers in both of the patients. DTI tractography revealed the reappearance of these fibers intraoperatively in one and postoperatively in the other one. Three months after surgery, the visual field and acuity improved and DTI tractography confirmed presence of crossing chiasmatic fibers.
Visual pathway DTI tractography is a promising adjunct to the standard perimetry in preoperative assessment of pituitary macroadenoma with serious ophthalmologic comorbidities. It also may be useful in the intraoperative determination of the optic pathway decompression and for following the visual outcome of these patients after surgery.
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^☆: This work was supported by grants from the Medical Research Council of Great Britain.

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Remyelination during optic nerve compression☆

Abstract

J. neurol. Sci.

Partial demyelination of cat spinal cord after x-irradiation and surgical interference

Neuropath. appl. Neurobiol.

Morphological characteristics of central demyelination and remyelination — A single-fibre study

Ann. Neurol.

Remyelination after transient experimental compression of the spinal cord

Ann. Neurol.