oligodendrocyte

1 9.9

A cell in the brain and spinal cord that makes myelin, a fatty layer that protects nerve fibers

noun
/ˌɑlɪɡoʊˈdɛndrəˌsaɪt/

Specialized

: oligodendrocito

oligodendrocytes wrap myelin
astrocytes and oligodendrocytes
oligodendrocytes will wrap

Examples

So now what about oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells?
OK, we'll talk about oligodendrocytes and how they also can inhibit the Axon growth.
Oligodendrocytes coat the axons with a myelin sheath to speed up neural signals.
The membrane of oligodendrocyte cells wraps around groups of axons, forming the myelin sheath.
As an adult learns a new skill, the brain produces new oligodendrocytes that enhance myelin around axons.

Surface Forms

oligodendrocyte singular

oligodendrocytes plural

Morphology

oligodendrocyte = oligo + dendro + cyte

The term is a specialized scientific compound from Greek combining forms ('oligo-' 'dendro-' '-cyte') that are not standalone English words for most learners, so the meaning ('a myelin-producing glial cell') cannot be derived by an average B1 learner from its parts.

Etymology

Oligodendrocyte comes from Greek parts oligo- 'few', dendro- 'tree', and -cyte 'cell', so it literally means a 'few-branch cell'. Picture a small tree with a few branches that reach out to many nerve fibers and wrap them with myelin, a fatty 'insulation', and that's why an oligodendrocyte is the cell that makes myelin in the brain and spinal cord.