Widespread drastic reduction of brain myelin content upon prolonged endurance exercise

Abstract

Recent evidence suggests that myelin lipids may act as glial energy reserves when glucose is lacking, a hypothesis yet to be solidly proven. Hereby, we examined the effects of running a marathon on the myelin content by MRI. Our findings show that marathon runners undergo widespread robust myelin decrease at completion of the effort. This reduction involves white and gray matter, and includes primary motor and sensory cortical areas and pathways, as well as the entire corpus callosum and internal capsule. Notably, myelin levels partially recover within two weeks after the marathon. These results reveal that myelin use and replenishment is an unprecedented form of metabolic plasticity aimed to maintain brain function during extreme conditions.