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

啮齿动物的门牙在整个动物的一生中都是通过成釉细胞不断沉积牙釉质（牙齿中最坚硬的成分）而再生的。假定的牙上皮干细胞（DESCs）存在于门牙底部的一个称为颈袢（CL）的结构中。DESCs可以自我更新并产生成釉细胞祖细胞（APCs）， APCs增殖并分化为产生牙釉质的成釉细胞。在这项研究中，我们探讨了成纤维细胞生长因子受体2b （FGFR2b）信号在成年小鼠门牙稳态中的作用。FGFR2b信号通过控制转运扩增apc的增殖，而不是通过调节desc的存活，在成人门牙的再生能力中发挥关键作用。

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.