Clemastine rescues behavioral changes and enhances remyelination in the cuprizone mouse model of demyelination

Abstract

Increasing evidence suggests that white matter disorders based on myelin sheath impairment may underlie the neuropathological changes in schizophrenia. But it is unknown whether enhancing remyelination is a beneficial approach to schizophrenia. To investigate this hypothesis, we used clemastine, an FDA-approved drug with high potency in promoting oligodendroglial differentiation and myelination, on a cuprizone-induced mouse model of demyelination. The mice exposed to cuprizone (0.2% in chow) for 6 weeks displayed schizophrenia-like behavioral changes, including decreased exploration of the center in the open field test and increased entries into the arms of the Y-maze, as well as evident demyelination in the cortex and corpus callosum. Clemastine treatment was initiated upon cuprizone withdrawal at 10 mg/kg per day for 3 weeks. As expected, myelin repair was greatly enhanced in the demyelinated regions with increased mature oligodendrocytes (APC-positive) and myelin basic protein. More importantly, the clemastine treatment rescued the schizophrenia-like behavioral changes in the open field test and the Y-maze compared to vehicle, suggesting a beneficial effect via promoting myelin repair. Our findings indicate that enhancing remyelination may be a potential therapy for schizophrenia.

Keywords: Y-maze; antagonist; demyelination; differentiation; muscarinic; myelin basic protein; oligodendrocyte precursor; oligodendroglia; open-field.