Oligodendrocytes Play a Critical Role in White Matter Damage of Vascular Dementia

•White matter lesions is a vital cause of cognitive decline of vascular dementia.•Oligodendrocytes orchestrate myelination can alleviate vascular dementia.•Oligodendrocyte differentiation and remyelination is regulated the potential drugs.•White matter is susceptible to inflammation damage induced by chronic hypoperfusion. With the deepening of population aging, the treatment of cognitive impairment and dementia is facing increasing challenges. Vascular dementia (VaD) is a cognitive dysfunction caused by brain blood flow damage and one of the most common causes of dementia after Alzheimer’s disease. White matter damage in patients with chronic ischemic dementia often occurs before cognitive impairment, and its pathological changes include leukoaraiosis, myelin destruction and oligodendrocyte death. The pathophysiology of vascular dementia is complex, involving a variety of neuronal and vascular lesions. The current proposed mechanisms include calcium overload, oxidative stress, nitrative stress and inflammatory damage, which can lead to hypoxia–ischemia and demyelination. Oligodendrocytes are the only myelinating cells in the central nervous system and closely associated with VaD. In this review article, we intend to further discuss the role of oligodendrocytes in white matter and myelin injury in VaD and the development of anti-myelin injury target drugs.