Scientists Find Gene Vital to Central Nervous System Development (image)

Washington University School of Medicine

Caption

Using the zebrafish facility at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, graduate student Sarah Ackerman (left) and senior author Kelly Monk, PhD, identified a gene that regulates how well the wiring of the central nervous system is insulated. Healthy insulation is vital for the speedy propagation of nerve cell signals. The finding, in zebrafish and mice, may have implications for human diseases like multiple sclerosis, in which this insulation is lost. The study appears Jan. 21 in Nature Communications.

Credit

Robert Boston

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