We used stimulated emission depletion (STED) superresolution microscopy to analyze the nanoscale organization of 12 glial and axonal proteins at the nodes of Ranvier of teased sciatic nerve fibers. Cytoskeletal proteins of the axon (betaIV spectrin, ankyrin G) exhibit a high degree of one-dimensional longitudinal order at nodal gaps. In contrast, axonal and glial nodal adhesion molecules [neurofascin-186, neuron glial-related cell adhesion molecule (NrCAM)] can arrange in a more complex, 2D hexagonal-like lattice but still feature a ā¼190-nm periodicity. Such a lattice-like organization is also found for glial actin. Sodium and potassium channels exhibit a one-dimensional periodicity, with the Na v channels appearing to have a lower degree of organization. At paranodes, both axonal proteins (betaII spectrin, Caspr) and glial proteins (neurofascin-155, ankyrin B) form periodic quasi-one-dimensional arrangements, with a high degree of interdependence between the position of the axonal and the glial proteins. The results indicate the presence of mechanisms that finely align the cytoskeleton of the axon with the one of the Schwann cells, both at paranodal junctions (with myelin loops) and at nodal gaps (with microvilli). Taken together, our observations reveal the importance of the lateral organization of proteins at the nodes of Ranvier and pave the way for deeper investigations of the molecular ultrastructural mechanisms involved in action potential propagation, the formation of the nodes, axon-glia interactions, and demyelination diseases.nodes of Ranvier | STED nanoscopy | cytoskeleton | axon-glia interaction | sciatic nerve I n recent years, knowledge of the ultrastructural organization of the axon initial segment (AIS) has been greatly extended by using optical nanoscopy to visualize its molecular composition. Stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM) and stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy were indeed crucial for the identification of a ā¼190-nm periodic organization of the key components of the AIS. In particular, a periodic spatial arrangement was discovered for cytoskeletal proteins (actin, ankyrin G, betaIV spectrin), adhesion molecules (neurofascin), and channels (voltage-gated sodium Na v channels) (1-4). In the distal part of the axon, this periodicity has been found for actin, adducin, ankyrin B, and betaII spectrin in virtually every neuron type from the central and peripheral nervous systems (CNS and PNS) (1, 2, 5, 6). Although myelination of axons does not alter the patterning of the subcortical cytoskeleton (5, 6), it changes its molecular composition, promoting the clustering of specific markers at the nodes of Ranvier, where the action potential is regenerated (reviewed in refs. 7, 8). At nodes of Ranvier, the myelin sheath formed by oligodendrocytes (in the CNS) or Schwann cells (in the PNS) is interrupted. Still, the nodal gap is surrounded by perinodal astrocytes and microvilli stemming from the Schwann cells in the CNS and PNS, respectively (9). Interestingly, the AIS an...