New Paper in Nature Neuroscience by the Group of Aiman Saab.

Firing Nerve Fibers in the Brain Are Supplied with Energy on Demand. To rapidly transmit electrical signals in the brain, the long nerve fibers are insulated with myelin produced by oligodendrocytes. These cells also respond to the electrical signals of active nerve fibers and provide them with energy on demand, as Zoe and Aiman have discovered. If this process, regulated by potassium, is disabled in mice, the nerve fibers are severely damaged as the animals age – resembling the defects of neurodegenerative diseases.