Insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 7 is up-regulated during EAE and inhibits the differentiation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells

Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) differentiation failure is one of the leading causes for remyelination defects in the demyelinating lesions of multiple sclerosis (MS). In this study, we explored the roles of insulin-like growth factor-binding proteins 7 (IGFBP-7) on OPCs differentiation during experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). We first investigated the expression pattern of IGFBP-7 by real-time PCR and immunofluorescence staining. It showed that IGFBP-7 was expressed in astrocytes (ACs), oligodendrocytes (OLs) and neurons both in vitro and in vivo. The mRNA and protein level of IGFBP-7 was also increased in the spinal cord from mice at the peak of EAE disease. Next we found that IGFBP-7 acted as a negatively regulator of the OPCs differentiation. Together, these data suggest that IGFBP-7 was up regulated during EAE and inhibit the transition from OPCs to mature OLs, implying its use as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of inflammatory demyelinating diseases.