Demyelination and Remyelination of Mouse Spinal Cord Neurons

Begin with an anesthetized mouse positioned on a stereotactic frame, with an incision exposing a region of the spinal cord.

Take the syringe containing lysolecithin, a detergent. Position it over the exposed area and touch one side of the midline.

Inject lysolecithin into the spinal cord's white matter, targeting the neurons with myelinated axons, which facilitate faster signal transmission.

Keep the syringe in place briefly to prevent backflow, then remove it.

Suture the incision, apply an antiseptic to prevent infection, and allow the mouse to recover.

Injected lysolecithin disrupts the myelin sheath around the neurons, impairing axonal signal transmission.

This process also triggers inflammation, recruiting immune cells to clear the myelin debris, causing localized demyelination of axons, a neuropathological condition.

Over time, oligodendrocyte precursor cells migrate to this site and differentiate into oligodendrocytes.

Later, these oligodendrocytes regenerate the myelin sheath around the demyelinated neurons and gradually restore the signal transmission.