Oligodendrocyte precursor cell death does not contribute to lifelong population homeostasis

Abstract

Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) proliferate and differentiate into myelinating oligodendrocytes throughout life, but it is unclear if their continuous self-renewal is balanced by cell death. We find that OPCs do not die during development or adulthood, nor during remyelination, acute systemic inflammation, or aging. These findings challenge the assumption that spontaneous OPC death is common and reveal that OPC homeostasis does not depend on programmed cell death.