Commentary on: Bai, X., Zhao, N., Koupourtidou, C., et al. "In the mouse cortex, oligodendrocytes regain a plastic capacity, transforming into astrocytes after acute injury". Pflugers Archiv : European journal of physiology 475, 1129-1131 (2023) doi:10.1007/s00424-023-02846-4.