Axonal spheroids are regulated by Schwann cells after peripheral nerve injury.

Axonal spheroids are hallmark features of neurodegeneration, forming along degenerating axons and contributing to disease progression. Despite their ubiquity across degenerative etiologies, the dynamics of spheroid disappearance, as well as their interactions with glial cells, remain poorly understood. Here, using an zebrafish model of peripheral nerve injury, we identified several patterns of spheroid disappearance that are regulated by Schwann cells. These results describe spheroid dynamics across their lifetimes, establish a role for the extra-axonal environment in altering spheroid outcomes, and identify a cellular mechanism whereby spheroid fates are altered.