Skip to main content

White Matter Maintenance

Meaning

White Matter Maintenance refers to the biological processes that ensure the structural integrity and optimal function of the white matter tracts in the central nervous system, which are composed of myelinated nerve fibers. White matter is crucial for high-speed communication between different brain regions. This maintenance is significantly influenced by neurotrophic factors and sex steroid hormones, which support the health of oligodendrocytes, the myelin-producing cells. Impaired white matter maintenance is associated with cognitive decline and neurological disorders.