Diminished Schwann cell repair responses underlie age-associated impaired axonal regeneration

Michio W. Painter, Amanda Brosius Lutz, Yung Chih Cheng, Alban Latremoliere, Kelly Duong, Christine M. Miller, Sean Posada, Enrique J. Cobos, Alice X. Zhang, Amy J. Wagers, Leif A. Havton, Ben Barres, Takao Omura, Clifford J. Woolf

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

122 Scopus citations

Abstract

The regenerative capacity of the peripheral nervous system declines with age. Why this occurs, however, is unknown. We demonstrate that 24-month-old mice exhibit an impairment of functional recovery after nerve injury compared to 2-month-old animals. We find no difference in the intrinsic growth capacity between aged and young sensory neurons invitro or in their ability to activate growth-associated transcriptional programs after injury. Instead, using age-mismatched nerve transplants invivo, we show that the extent of functional recovery depends on the age of the nerve graft, and not the age of the host. Molecular interrogation of the sciatic nerve reveals that aged Schwann cells (SCs) fail to rapidly activate a transcriptional repair program after injury. Functionally, aged SCs exhibit impaired dedifferentiation, myelin clearance, and macrophage recruitment. These results suggest that the age-associated decline in axonal regeneration results from diminished Schwann cell plasticity, leading to slower myelin clearance.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)331-343
Number of pages13
JournalNeuron
Volume83
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 16 2014
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience

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