Abstract

Oligodendrocytes form an insulating multilamellar structure of compact myelin around axons, which allows efficient and rapid propagation of action potentials. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms operating at the onset of myelination and during maintenance of the myelin sheath in the adult. Here we use a genetic cell ablation approach combined with Affymetrix GeneChip microarrays to identify a number of oligodendrocyte-enriched genes that may play a key role in myelination. One of the "oligogenes" we cloned using this approach is Tmem 10/Opalin, which encodes for a novel transmembrane glycoprotein. In situ hybridization and RT-PCR analysis revealed that Tmem 10 is selectively expressed by oligodendrocytes and that its expression is induced during their differentiation. Developmental immunofluorescence analysis demonstrated that Tmem 10 starts to be expressed in the white matter tracks of the cerebellum and the corpus callosum at the onset of myelination after the appearance of other myelin genes such as MBP. In contrast to the spinal cord and brain, Tmem 10 was not detected in myelinating Schwann cells, indicating that it is a CNS-specific myelin protein. In mature oligodendrocytes, Tmem 10 was present at the cell soma and processes, as well as along myelinated internodes, where it was occasionally concentrated at the paranodes. In myelinating spinal cord cultures, Tmem 10 was detected in MBP-positive cellular processes that were aligned with underlying axons before myelination commenced. These results suggest a possible role of Tmem 10 in oligodendrocyte differentiation and CNS myelination. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.