Which among the following tiny cells helps build the myelin sheaths in the Central Nervous System?

Correct option is D

Oligodendrocytes are specialized glial cells in the central nervous system responsible for producing and maintaining myelin sheaths around axons. Each oligodendrocyte can myelinate multiple axon segments (up to 50), creating the insulating layers that enable rapid saltatory conduction of action potentials. This is analogous to Schwann cells that perform the same function in the peripheral nervous system.

Information Booster:
1. Myelination Function: Oligodendrocytes wrap their membrane extensions around axons multiple times, creating the fatty myelin sheath that insulates neural signals
2. CNS Specificity: While oligodendrocytes handle myelination in the CNS, Schwann cells perform this role in the peripheral nervous system
3. Multiple Axons: Unlike Schwann cells (one axon per cell), a single oligodendrocyte can myelinate segments of multiple different axons
4. Development: Oligodendrocytes develop from oligodendrocyte precursor cells and continue myelination through childhood and adolescence
5. Clinical Importance: Damage to oligodendrocytes occurs in demyelinating diseases like multiple sclerosis, leading to impaired neural transmission

Additional Knowledge:
• Radial glia (A): Serve as scaffolding for migrating neurons during brain development and act as neural stem cells
• Astrocytes (B): Star-shaped cells that support neurons by regulating the chemical environment, providing nutrients, and maintaining the blood-brain barrier
• Microglia (C): Immune cells of the CNS that act as the brain's primary defense system, removing debris and pathogens