Heat shock proteins (hsp) are known to facilitate the generation of specific immune responses by chaperoning proteins and peptides involved in T cell activation. Hsp have been shown to be strikingly elevated in multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions. The unique chaperonin properties of hsp70 have allowed identification of immunogenic proteins bound to it by the ex vivo demonstration of hsp association...

Proteolipid protein (PLP) is the most abundant protein of CNS myelin, and is posttranslationally acylated by covalent attachment of long chain fatty acids to cysteine residues via a thioester linkage. Two of the acylation sites are within epitopes of PLP that are encephalitogenic in SJL/J mice (PLP(104-117) and PLP(139-151)) and against which increased immune responses have been detected in som...

Myelin is probably one of the most fascinating and innovative biological acquisition: a glia plasma membrane tightly wrapped around an axon and insulating it. Chondrichthyans (cartilaginous fishes) form a large group of vertebrates, and they are among oldest extant jawed vertebrate lineage. It has been known from studies 150 years ago, that they are positioned at the root of the successful appe...

Background : Exercise training induces beneficial effects on neurodegenerative diseases, and specifically multiple sclerosis (MS) it’s model experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). However, it is unclear whether exercise exerts direct protective the central nervous system (CNS), nor are mechanisms of neuroprotection fully understood. In this study, we investigated neuroprotective high-...

Despite recent advances in our understanding of lineage of oligodendrocytes, detailed molecular characterization of this lineage in vivo is limited, primarily because of our inability to obtain a pure population of cells in situ. To define the molecular characteristics of oligodendrocyte lineage cells during development and their response to injury, we developed a strategy that uses laser captu...

We previously described a synthetic peptide of myelin proteolipid protein (PLP), peptide 139-151, which induces experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in SJL/J (H-2s) mice. We have now identified an additional determinant, PLP residues 178-191, that is also a potent encephalitogen in this strain. When PLP peptide 178-191 was compared with peptide 139-151 on an equimolar basis, the day of onset...

Immunization with myelin components can elicit experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). EAE susceptibility varies between mouse strains, depending on the antigen employed. BL/6 mice are largely resistant to EAE induction with proteolipid protein (PLP), probably a reflection of antigen-specific tolerance. However, the extent and mechanism(s) of tolerance to PLP remain unclear. Here, we i...

Introduction: Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) is a sensorimotor disorder with a prevalence of 5-10% in western countries [1]. The disorder is characterized by uncomfortable leg sensations with an irresistible urge to move the legs, causing chronic sleep disruption at night. Evidence from a number of analytical approaches has suggested that insufficient brain iron may underlie the pathophysiology o...

In This Issue In This Issue trophin, a member of the spectrin superfamily of actin-binding proteins ubiquitously expressed in human cells, helps link the actin cytoskeleton to the extracellular matrix. Galkin et al. report on page 231 that a newly developed image analysis method identifies two different modes of utrophin binding to F-actin. The findings contradict earlier studies on utrophin–ac...