Grow a backbone, will ya?
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Our spinal cords do more than stand us up. They carry our bodies’ nerves’ signals back and forth to our brain. These signals travel inside myelin proteins, which are kind of like wire insulation. But how did our bodies invent this system?
Enter Tanay Ghosh and team at the University of Cambridge.
They looked at specific genes activated during spinal cord development and myelin production. One genetic sequence they named “RetroMyelin” caught their attention, and originates from AN ANCIENT VIRUS!
They studied the growth of rat neurons that lacked the Retromyelin gene. Results? The cells produced LESS THAN HALF of the myelin they usually would for spinal cord development. The researchers replicated this finding in neurons from OTHER vertebrates like frogs and fish!
This discovery reveals how an ancient viral infection potentially helped the evolution of our backbones!
Talk about a trend going viral!
Reference: Ghosh T, Almeida RG, Zhao C, Mannioui A, Martin E, et al. A retroviral link to vertebrate myelination through retrotransposon-RNA-mediated control of myelin gene expression. Cell 187 (2024), 814-830. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2024.01.011