Curiosity
Nerve signals can travel faster than 100 m/s
The secret to this speed is myelin, an insulating sheath made in the brain by oligodendrocytes.
In thin, uninsulated nerve fibers, the electrical impulse moves at about 1 meter per second. In myelin-wrapped fibers, it can exceed 100 m/s — over 360 km/h.
Myelin works like the insulation on a wire: the signal jumps from one uninsulated gap to the next. In the central nervous system, this sheath is made by oligodendrocytes. It is mostly lipid, but relies on specific proteins, such as myelin basic protein (MBP) and PLP, to stay compact.
Changes in oligodendrocytes and myelin proteins are among the topics the LNP studies in schizophrenia.
