Thyroid hormone and remyelination in adult central nervous system:: a lesson from an inflammatory-demyelinating disease

Re-myelination in the adult CNS has been demonstrated in different experimental models of demyelinating diseases. However, there is no clear evidence that re-myelination is effective in multiple sclerosis (MS), the most diffuse demyelinating disease. Moreover, chronic disabilities in MS are believed to be due to remyelination failure and consequent neuron damage and degeneration. Due to the presence of numerous oligodendrocyte precursors inside demyelination plaques, reasons for remyelination failure are unknown. In this paper, we reviewed data from embryonic development and in vitro studies supporting the primary role of thyroid hormone in oligodendrocyte maturation. We also reviewed personal data on the possibility of promoting myelination in chronic experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE), a widely used experimental model of MS, by recruiting progenitors and channeling them into oligodendroglial lineage through the administration of thyroid hormone. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.