Primary Oligodendrocyte Death Does Not Elicit Anti-CNS Immunity To specifically test oligodendrocyte death as a trigger for anti-CNS immunity, researchers inducibly killed oligodendrocytes in an in vivo mouse model. [Nat Neurosci] Abstract | Press Release N-Terminally Cleaved Bcl-xL Mediates Ischemia-Induced Neuronal Death Researchers found that the Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL inhibitor ABT-737 protected rats against neuronal death in a clinically relevant model of brain ischemia. [Nat Neurosci] Abstract Unique Functional Properties of Somatostatin-Expressing GABAergic Neurons in Mouse Barrel Cortex Researchers found unique membrane potential dynamics of somatostatin-expressing neurons in layer 2/3 of the primary somatosensory barrel cortex of awake behaving mice. [Nat Neurosci] Abstract Histone Deacetylase Complexes Promote Trinucleotide Repeat Expansions Expansions of DNA trinucleotide repeats cause at least 17 inherited neurodegenerative diseases, such as Huntington’s disease. In cultured human astrocytes, expansions were suppressed by 75% upon inhibition or knockdown of histone deacetylase complex 3, whereas siRNA against the histone acetyltransferases CBP/p300 stimulated expansions. [PLoS Biol] Abstract | Press Release NLK Positively Regulates Wnt/ß-Catenin Signaling by Phosphorylating LEF1 in Neural Progenitor Cells Here, investigators show that inhibition of nemo-like kinase 2 (Nlk2) function in zebrafish results in decreased lymphoid enhancer factor-1 (Lef1)-mediated gene expression and cell proliferation in the presumptive midbrain, resulting in a reduction of midbrain tectum size. [EMBO J] Abstract Lithium Enhances Remyelination of Peripheral Nerves Researchers showed that the treatment of adult mice with lithium chloride after facial nerve crush injury stimulated the expression of myelin genes, restored the myelin structure, and accelerated the recovery of whisker movements. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract Axonal Transport Deficits and Degeneration Can Evolve Independently in Mouse Models of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis By imaging changes in axonal morphology and organelle transport over time in several animal models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, researchers now find that deficits in axonal transport of organelles (mitochondria, endosomes) and axon degeneration can evolve independently. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract Development of GABAergic Inputs Controls the Contribution of Maturing Neurons to the Adult Hippocampal Network Here, researchers use photostimulation to demonstrate the time course by which anatomically isolated inhibitory inputs develop onto maturing granule cells. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract Repressor Element-1 Silencing Transcription Factor (REST)-Dependent Epigenetic Remodeling Is Critical to Ischemia-Induced Neuronal Death Here, researchers show that neuronal insults trigger activation of REST and CoREST in a clinically relevant model of ischemic stroke and that REST binds a subset of “transcriptionally responsive” genes, of which the AMPA receptor subunit GluA2 is a top hit. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Neural Crest Stem Cells from Adult Bone Marrow: Characterization of Their Surprising Similarities and Differences Interestingly, researchers demonstrate that mesenchymal stem cells share with neural crest stem cells the same ability to truly differentiate into Tuj1-positive cells when co-cultivated with paraformaldehyde-fixed cerebellar granule neurons. [Cell Mol Life Sci] Abstract |