Nervous system

About: Nervous system is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 16729 publications have been published within this topic receiving 847181 citations.

Polyneuropathy and IgM monoclonal gammopathy: Studies on the pathogenetic role of anti‐myelin‐associated glycoprotein antibody

Abstract: Attention has recently been directed toward patients having a polyneuropathy and a monoclonal IgM anti-myelin-associated glycoprotein (anti-MAG) antibody. The possibility of a pathogenetic role for the anti-MAG antibody in the evolution of the polyneuropathy and in the development of central nervous system signs, including tremor and ataxia, remains unresolved. In 5 patients with this syndrome whose clinical courses were followed closely, in 1 of whom a complete postmortem examination of the nervous system was performed, we made the following observations: the anti-MAG antibody did not localize to the compact layer of the myelin sheath in affected nerves, but did localize to areas of myelin splitting; anti-MAG antibody present in the sural nerve of an affected individual for 7 years was not associated with progressive pathology; anti-MAG antibody was not deposited in the central nervous system of an affected individual, although the antibody did bind to these same tissues in vitro; deposition of anti-MAG antibody observed at postmortem examination did not correlate with the degree of pathological change; and study of the peripheral nervous system favored a primary axonal neuropathy with secondary demyelination.

The Fixation of Central Nervous Tissue and the Analysis of Electron Micrographs of the Neuropil, with Special Reference to the Cerebral Cortex

Abstract: One of the greatest difficulties encountered by electron microscopists studying the central nervous system is the fixation of the tissue. This problem has delayed detailed analyses of the central nervous system in mammals to such an extent that only recently have the descriptions of the individual components of this tissue been completed. By contrast, in other tissues of the body this same stage was arrived at early in the present decade. Even today, a student of the fine structure of the nervous system cannot be certain of obtaining good preservation of his tissue and there are still some parts of the brain and spinal cord that are successfully resisting attempts to study their morphology. These parts are the ones that contain a high proportion of myelinated nerve fibers.

MAP1B is required for axon guidance and Is involved in the development of the central and peripheral nervous system.

Abstract: Microtubule-associated proteins such as MAP1B have long been suspected to play an important role in neuronal differentiation, but proof has been lacking. Previous MAP1B gene targeting studies yielded contradictory and inconclusive results and did not reveal MAP1B function. In contrast to two earlier efforts, we now describe generation of a complete MAP1B null allele. Mice heterozygous for this MAP1B deletion were not affected. Homozygous mutants were viable but displayed a striking developmental defect in the brain, the selective absence of the corpus callosum, and the concomitant formation of myelinated fiber bundles consisting of misguided cortical axons. In addition, peripheral nerves of MAP1B-deficient mice had a reduced number of large myelinated axons. The myelin sheaths of the remaining axons were of reduced thickness, resulting in a decrease of nerve conduction velocity in the adult sciatic nerve. On the other hand, the anticipated involvement of MAP1B in retinal development and γ-aminobutyric acid C receptor clustering was not substantiated. Our results demonstrate an essential role of MAP1B in development and function of the nervous system and resolve a previous controversy over its importance.