Loss of Schwann cell plasticity in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP)

BACKGROUND: Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is often associated with chronic disability, which can be accounted to incomplete regeneration of injured axons. We hypothesized that Schwann cell support for regenerating axons may be altered in CIDP, which may account for the poor clinical recovery seen in many patients. METHODS: We exposed human and rodent Schwann cells to sera from CIDP patients and controls. In a model of chronic nerve denervation, we transplanted these conditioned Schwann cells intraneurally and assessed their capacity to support axonal regeneration by electrophysiology and morphometry. RESULTS: CIDP-conditioned Schwann cells were less growth supportive for regenerating axons as compared to Schwann cells exposed to control sera. The loss of Schwann cell support was associated with lower levels of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in CIDP sera and correlated with altered expression of c-Jun and p57kip2 in Schwann cells. The inactivation of these regulatory factors resulted in an altered expression of neurotrophins including BDNF, GDNF, and NGF in CIDP-conditioned Schwann cells in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides evidence that pro-regenerative functions of Schwann cells are affected in CIDP. It thereby offers a possible explanation for the clinical observation that in many CIDP patients recovery is incomplete despite sufficient immunosuppressive treatment. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12974-016-0711-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.