New 'Stars' In Formation Of Nerve Cell Insulation:"Astrocytes Promote Myelination in Response to Electrical Impulses"
The insulating myelin sheath enwrapping the cable-like axons of nerve cells is the major target of attack of the immune system in multiple sclerosis. Such attack causes neural short-circuits that give rise to the muscle weakness, loss of coordination, and speech and visual loss in the disease.

Now, Douglas Fields of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and his colleagues have reported in the March 16, 2006, issue of Neuron that supporting cells called astrocytes in the central nervous system (CNS) promote myelination by releasing an immune system molecule that triggers myelin-forming cells to action. The finding, they say, "may offer new approaches to treating demyelinating diseases."