title: Ultrastructural analysis of the microfibrillar component of mouse and human periodontal oxytalan fibers.
abstract: Microfibrillar populations were quantified for mouse and human periodontal ligament oxytalan fibers in cross-section. Ten mouse fibers (Group 1) and ten human fibers (Group 2) were randomly selected from representative levels of the ligament and digitized for the total fiber area (TFA) and the microfibrillar component area (MFA). A third group of specific mouse oxytalan fibers (RER) was also evaluated. Quantified fiber dimensions varied markedly as did the percentage microfibrillar area for each group. Staining revealed morphologically different components within each fiber. Mouse and human microfibrils were composed of varying numbers of microfilaments. Analysis of covariance showed that the structural relationship between MFA and TFA was linear for each of the three groups. Slopes for the Group 1 mouse and human microfibrillar components were the same (p greater than 0.1) but different (p less than 0.05) for the RER group. Intercepts for all three groups were significantly different at the 1% level. The relevance of these species specific findings is discussed.
mesh_terms: D008841:Actin Cytoskeleton / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D000293:Adolescent; D000818:Animals; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D010513:Periodontal Ligament / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D013045:Species Specificity; D013194:Staining and Labeling