Skip to main content

Umbrella menu

  • SfN.org
  • eNeuro
  • The Journal of Neuroscience
  • Neuronline
  • BrainFacts.org

Main menu

  • HOME
  • CONTENT
    • Early Release
    • Featured
    • Current Issue
    • Issue Archive
    • Collections
  • ALERTS
  • FOR AUTHORS
    • Preparing a Manuscript
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Fees
    • Journal Club
    • eLetters
    • Submit
  • EDITORIAL BOARD
  • ABOUT
    • Overview
    • Advertise
    • For the Media
    • Rights and Permissions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Feedback
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • SfN.org
  • eNeuro
  • The Journal of Neuroscience
  • Neuronline
  • BrainFacts.org

User menu

  • Log in
  • Subscribe
  • My alerts
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
Journal of Neuroscience
  • Log in
  • Subscribe
  • My alerts
  • My Cart
Journal of Neuroscience

Advanced Search

Submit a Manuscript
  • HOME
  • CONTENT
    • Early Release
    • Featured
    • Current Issue
    • Issue Archive
    • Collections
  • ALERTS
  • FOR AUTHORS
    • Preparing a Manuscript
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Fees
    • Journal Club
    • eLetters
    • Submit
  • EDITORIAL BOARD
  • ABOUT
    • Overview
    • Advertise
    • For the Media
    • Rights and Permissions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Feedback
  • SUBSCRIBE
PreviousNext
Research Articles, Development/Plasticity/Repair

PAK1 Positively Regulates Oligodendrocyte Morphology and Myelination

Tanya L. Brown, Hirokazu Hashimoto, Lisbet T. Finseth, Teresa L. Wood and Wendy B. Macklin
Journal of Neuroscience 3 March 2021, 41 (9) 1864-1877; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0229-20.2021
Tanya L. Brown
1Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and
2Cell Biology, Stem Cells, and Development Graduate Program, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado 80045
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Hirokazu Hashimoto
1Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Lisbet T. Finseth
1Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Lisbet T. Finseth
Teresa L. Wood
3Department of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Neuroscience, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey 07101
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Wendy B. Macklin
1Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Wendy B. Macklin
  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF
Loading

Abstract

The actin cytoskeleton is crucial for oligodendrocyte differentiation and myelination. Here we show that p21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1), a well-known actin regulator, promotes oligodendrocyte morphologic change and myelin production in the CNS. A combination of in vitro and in vivo models demonstrated that PAK1 is expressed throughout the oligodendrocyte lineage with highest expression in differentiated oligodendrocytes. Inhibiting PAK1 early in oligodendrocyte development decreased oligodendrocyte morphologic complexity and altered F-actin spreading at the tips of oligodendrocyte progenitor cell processes. Constitutively activating AKT in oligodendrocytes in male and female mice, which leads to excessive myelin wrapping, increased PAK1 expression, suggesting an impact of PAK1 during active myelin wrapping. Furthermore, constitutively activating PAK1 in oligodendrocytes in zebrafish led to an increase in myelin internode length while inhibiting PAK1 during active myelination decreased internode length. As myelin parameters influence conduction velocity, these data suggest that PAK1 may influence communication within the CNS. These data support a model in which PAK1 is a positive regulator of CNS myelination.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Myelin is a critical component of the CNS that provides metabolic support to neurons and also facilitates communication between cells in the CNS. Recent data demonstrate that actin dynamics drives myelin wrapping, but how actin is regulated during myelin wrapping is unknown. The authors investigate the role of the cytoskeletal modulator PAK1 during differentiation and myelination by oligodendrocytes, the myelinating cells of the CNS. They demonstrate that PAK1 promotes oligodendrocyte differentiation and myelination by modulating the cytoskeleton and thereby internode length, thus playing a critical role in the function of the CNS.

  • actin
  • cytoskeleton
  • myelin
  • oligodendrocyte
  • PAK1

SfN exclusive license.

View Full Text

Member Log In

Log in using your username and password

Enter your Journal of Neuroscience username.
Enter the password that accompanies your username.
Forgot your user name or password?

Purchase access

You may purchase access to this article. This will require you to create an account if you don't already have one.
Back to top

In this issue

The Journal of Neuroscience: 41 (9)
Journal of Neuroscience
Vol. 41, Issue 9
3 Mar 2021
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • About the Cover
  • Index by author
  • Ed Board (PDF)
Email

Thank you for sharing this Journal of Neuroscience article.

NOTE: We request your email address only to inform the recipient that it was you who recommended this article, and that it is not junk mail. We do not retain these email addresses.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
PAK1 Positively Regulates Oligodendrocyte Morphology and Myelination
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from Journal of Neuroscience
(Your Name) thought you would be interested in this article in Journal of Neuroscience.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Print
View Full Page PDF
Citation Tools
PAK1 Positively Regulates Oligodendrocyte Morphology and Myelination
Tanya L. Brown, Hirokazu Hashimoto, Lisbet T. Finseth, Teresa L. Wood, Wendy B. Macklin
Journal of Neuroscience 3 March 2021, 41 (9) 1864-1877; DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0229-20.2021

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Respond to this article
Request Permissions
Share
PAK1 Positively Regulates Oligodendrocyte Morphology and Myelination
Tanya L. Brown, Hirokazu Hashimoto, Lisbet T. Finseth, Teresa L. Wood, Wendy B. Macklin
Journal of Neuroscience 3 March 2021, 41 (9) 1864-1877; DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0229-20.2021
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Jump to section

  • Article
    • Abstract
    • Introduction
    • Materials and Methods
    • Results
    • Discussion
    • Footnotes
    • References
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF

Keywords

  • actin
  • cytoskeleton
  • myelin
  • oligodendrocyte
  • PAK1

Responses to this article

Respond to this article

Jump to comment:

No eLetters have been published for this article.

Related Articles

Cited By...

More in this TOC Section

Research Articles

  • Glutamatergic neurons in the preoptic hypothalamus promote wakefulness, destabilize NREM sleep, suppress REM sleep, and regulate cortical dynamics
  • Coordinated postnatal maturation of striatal cholinergic interneurons and dopamine release dynamics in mice
  • Synaptophysin Regulates Fusion Pores and Exocytosis Mode in Chromaffin Cells
Show more Research Articles

Development/Plasticity/Repair

  • Coordinated postnatal maturation of striatal cholinergic interneurons and dopamine release dynamics in mice
  • Brief sensory deprivation triggers cell type-specific structural and functional plasticity in olfactory bulb neurons
Show more Development/Plasticity/Repair
  • Home
  • Alerts
  • Visit Society for Neuroscience on Facebook
  • Follow Society for Neuroscience on Twitter
  • Follow Society for Neuroscience on LinkedIn
  • Visit Society for Neuroscience on Youtube
  • Follow our RSS feeds

Content

  • Early Release
  • Current Issue
  • Issue Archive
  • Collections

Information

  • For Authors
  • For Advertisers
  • For the Media
  • For Subscribers

About

  • About the Journal
  • Editorial Board
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Feedback
(JNeurosci logo)
(SfN logo)

Copyright © 2021 by the Society for Neuroscience.
JNeurosci Online ISSN: 1529-2401

The ideas and opinions expressed in JNeurosci do not necessarily reflect those of SfN or the JNeurosci Editorial Board. Publication of an advertisement or other product mention in JNeurosci should not be construed as an endorsement of the manufacturer’s claims. SfN does not assume any responsibility for any injury and/or damage to persons or property arising from or related to any use of any material contained in JNeurosci.