Myelin sheath: The myelin sheath is the insulating coating

The myelin sheath is the insulating coating that protects your nerves and helps them quickly and efficiently send signals throughout your body. When the myelin coating is damaged, it can cause various medical conditions that slow or stop the transmission of these signals. Explore the structure, function, and importance of myelin in the brain, its role in neural communication, and its impact on brain health and disorders. Myelin is a modified cell membrane that forms a multilayer sheath around the axon. It retains the main characteristics of biological membranes, such as lipid... Myelin sheath formation In the peripheral nervous system (PNS), myelination is preceded by invasion of the nerve bundle by Schwann cells, rapid multiplication of these cells and segregation of the individual axons by Schwann cell processes. Smaller axons (≤1 μm), which will remain unmyelinated, are segregated; several may be enclosed in one cell, each within its own pocket. Large axons (≥1 μm) destined for myelination are enclosed singly, one cell per axon per internode. These cells ...