FGFR2b signaling controls the differentiation and function of Dental Pulp Stem Cells

啮齿动物的门牙在整个动物一生中都会再生，这是成釉细胞不断沉积釉质的结果，釉质是牙齿最坚硬的成分。假想的牙齿上皮干细胞(DESCs)存在于门牙底部的一种称为颈环(CL)的结构中。DESCs可以自我更新，产生成釉细胞前体细胞(APC)，APC增殖分化为成釉细胞产生釉质。在这项研究中，我们探讨了成纤维细胞生长因子受体2b(FGFR2b)信号在成年小鼠切牙动态平衡中的作用。FGFR2b信号在成人切牙再生能力中起关键作用，是通过控制转运性扩增的APC的增殖，而不是通过调节DESCs的存活。

Rodent incisors regenerate throughout the animal lifetime as a result of the continuous deposition of enamel, the hardest component of the tooth, by ameloblasts. Putative dental epithelial stem cells (DESCs) reside at the base of the incisors in a structure called the cervical loop (CL). The DESCs can self renew and give rise to ameloblast progenitor cells (APCs), which proliferate and differentiate into ameloblasts producing enamel. In this study, we explored the role of Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 2b (FGFR2b) signaling during incisor homeostasis in the adult mice. FGFR2b signaling plays a critical role in the regenerative capacity of adult incisors by controlling the proliferation of transit amplifying APCs, but not by regulating the survival of DESCs.