Table 1.
Studies in Activity Dependent Myelination.
| InIntervention | Finding | Study |
|---|---|---|
| Experimental Models | ||
| Social isolation: 4 weeks of isolation in juvenile mice | Deficits in social interaction task not rescued by social re-introduction mPFC: reduction in ramification of mature astrocytes, reduced internode per oligo, thinning of myelin sheath |
[89,90] |
| Complex wheel task in adult mice | Additional OPCs and mature oligodendrocytes in the corpus callosum. Generation of new oligodendrocytes required skill improvement | [91] |
| Rats trained in single-pallet reaching task | Increase FA in Cingulum and external capsule | [92] |
| Optical stimulation of the pre-motor cortex in mice | Proliferation of OPCs in the deep cortex and subcortical white matter within the stimulated circuit. Activity induced expansion of the oligodendrocyte lineage | [93] |
| Human Studies | ||
| Juggling training in adults | Increased FA | [94] |
| Musical training | Increased FA | [95] |
| Learning a second language | Increased FA | [96] |
| Extensive piano practicing | Enhanced white matter development | [97] |
| finger-thumb opposition sequence task (10 min daily, over 4 weeks) | Increased FA | [98] |
| Visuomotor skill training | Increased myelination only in ROIs contralateral to trained limb, correlated with skill acquisition (Increased myelin water fraction [MWF]) | [99] |
| Exercise (Physical fitness or Activity: PFA) | Increased PFA with improved WM structure, but effect size small | [100] |
| Memory Training | Those with higher MD had the least improvement | [101] |
| Cardiorespiratory fitness (exercise training) | Cardiorespiratory fitness (exercise training) | [102] |
mPFC: medial Prefrontal Cortex; OPCs: Oligodendrocyte Progenitor Cells; FA: Fractional Anisotropy; ROIs: Regions of Interest; MD: Mean Diffusivity.