Cell fate conversion of differentiated somatic cells into glial cells

A method of promoting myelination in the central nervous system (CNS) of a subject in need thereof, the method comprising directly administering at a site within the CNS of the subject a therapeutically effective amount of an isolated population of reprogrammed glial cells, thereby enhancing myelination at the site of administration, wherein the isolated population of reprogrammed glial cells is generated by:

• providing somatic cells from the subject;
• culturing said somatic cells;
• infecting somatic cells with a retroviral vector to deliver reprogramming factors Sox 10, Olig2, and Nkx6.2;
• inducing expression of reprogramming factors Sox 10, Olig2, and Nkx6.2 in said cultured somatic cells under conditions to reprogram the somatic cells into a population of glial cells, wherein the glial cells express endogenous gene Olig2;
• and
• sorting said population of re-programmed glial cells from non-programmed cultured somatic cells to produce an enriched population of re-programmed glial cells.