MORFOGENESIS DAN DIFERENSIASI SEL DALAM PERKEMBANGAN GIGI (TINJAUAN MOLEKULER)

Tooth development provides a dynamic process that has recently been studied at molecular level. There has been much progress toward the understanding of epithelial-mesenchymal cell signaling in tooth germ formation, morphogenesis and cell differentiation. The epithelial-mesenchym interaction is suggested to be the most important mechanism in organogenesis that stimulate mitosis and prevent apoptosis adjacent to the tissue surface. Moreover it affects cell formation and cell differentiation. Enamel knot is assumed to act as a signaling center in the tooth germ epithelial in organizing the tooth pattern as well as controlling the tooth growth. The genes involved in this mechanism are p21, Fgf-4, Shh, Bmp-2, bmp-4, Msx-1 and Lef-1 which are expressed in the enamel knot during the bud stage and cap stage. At the further step of differentiation, epithelial ameloblast and mesenchymal odontoblast will deposit organic matrix in enamel and dentin. This article reviews the molecular morphogenesis of tooth development.