Oligdendrocyte

An oligdendrocyte, from Greek for "a cell with a few branches," is a type of neuroglia (also called glial cells). In vertebrates, the function of an oligodendrocyte is to insulate and protect the axons of the central nervous system which are responsible for carrying information between the dendrites and the terminal buttons. The function of an oligodendrocyte is the creation of a myelin sheath (composed of 80% lipid and 20% protein) which is responsible for insulating the axon and speeding up the transmission of information.