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Movements in the Myelin Schwann Sheath of the Vertebrate Axon

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Abstract

THE demonstration in our laboratory that radioactive amino-acid and uridine label the myelin lamellae of vertebrate peripheral nerve and penetrate into the axon1–3 raised the problem of the route and mechanism of transport of these materials through the layered sheath4. Two mechanisms seemed salient: direct transfer through the battery of stacked myelin membranes, governed by the forces involved in transport across membranes; and transport within the Schwann cytoplasm into the depths of the myelin via the Schmidt–Lanterman clefts, perhaps propelled by movements of the Schwann cell body. These speculations, particularly the second one, led us to examine the myelin sheaths of living nerve fibres with lapsed-time microcinematography. We report our findings on movements in the myelin sheath, with particular reference to the clefts.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine and Developmental Biology Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, 44106

    MARCUS SINGER & SUSAN V. BRYANT

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  1. MARCUS SINGER
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  2. SUSAN V. BRYANT
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SINGER, M., BRYANT, S. Movements in the Myelin Schwann Sheath of the Vertebrate Axon. Nature 221, 1148–1150 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1038/2211148a0

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