Auraptene induces oligodendrocyte lineage precursor cells in a cuprizone-induced animal model of demyelination

Abstract We investigated the effects of auraptene on mouse oligodendroglial cell lineage in an animal model of demyelination induced by cuprizone. Auraptene, a citrus coumarin, was intraperitoneally administered to mice fed the demyelinating agent cuprizone. Immunohistochemical analysis of the corpus callosum and/or Western blotting analysis of brain extracts revealed that cuprizone reduced immunoreactivity for myelin-basic protein, a marker of myelin, whereas it increased immunoreactivity to platelet derived-growth factor receptor-α, a marker of oligodendrocyte precursor cells. Administration of auraptene enhanced the immunoreactivity to oligodendrocyte transcription factor 2, a marker of oligodendrocyte precursor cells and oligodendrocyte lineage precursor cells, but had no effect on immunoreactivity to myelin-basic protein or platelet-derived growth factor receptor-α. These findings suggest that auraptene promotes the production of oligodendrocyte lineage precursor cells in an animal model of demyelination and may be useful for individuals with demyelinating diseases.