The functional elucidation of vesicles in tooth mineralization

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25862011
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Orthodontics/Pediatric dentistry
• Research Institution: Osaka University
• Principal Investigator: Michikami Ikumi 大阪大学, 歯学研究科(研究院), 助教 (80589771)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 歯の石灰化 / 小胞輸送 / SNARE

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we focused on membrane trafficking system as a factor that affects calcification of teeth, and the identification of genes related to the vesicular transport in the tooth-forming cells.
The SNARE (Soluble NSF Attachment protein Receptor) proteins are involved in membrane vesicle fusion. We identified Snap23, one of the SNARE family, expression in tooth by qRT-PCR. In order to confirm the expression and localization of Snap23, we performed sectional in situ hybridization on a murine tooth germ. In situ analysis showed that the specific expression of Snap23 in ameloblast. Therefore, we generated the conditional knock-out mice lacking the Snap23 specifically in ameloblast, and analyzed the phenotype of the mice for the purpose of elucidating the mechanism of calcification of teeth. As a result of the micro-CT analysis, the formation of enamel of S23fl / fl ; K14-Cre mice in the first molar was less than that of the control littermates.

Free Research Field

小児歯科学