Myelin plasticity in adulthood and aging

The central nervous system maintains the potential for molecular and cellular plasticity throughout life. This flexibility underlies fundamental features of neural circuitry including the brain's ability to sense, store, and properly adapt to everchanging external stimuli on time scales from seconds to years. Evidence for most forms of plasticity are centered around changes in neuronal structure and synaptic strength, however recent data suggests that myelinating oligodendrocytes exhibit certain forms of plasticity in the adult. This plasticity ranges from the generation of entirely new myelinating cells to more subtle changes in myelin sheath length, thickness, and distribution along axons. The extent to which these changes dynamically modify axonal function and neural circuitry and whether they are directly related to mechanisms of learning and memory remains an open question. Here we describe different forms of myelin plasticity, highlight some recent evidence for changes in myelination throughout life, and discuss how defects in these forms of plasticity could be associated with cognitive decline in aging.