title: Possible involvement of melatonin in tooth development: expression of melatonin 1a receptor in human and mouse tooth germs.
abstract: Melatonin is known to regulate a variety of physiological processes including control of circadian rhythms, regulation of seasonal reproductive function, regulation of body temperature, free radical scavenging, and so forth. Accumulating evidence from in vitro and in vivo experiments has also suggested that melatonin may have an influence on skeletal growth and bone formation. However, little is known about the effects of melatonin on tooth development and growth, which thus remain to be elucidated. This study was performed to examine the possibility that melatonin might exert its influence on tooth development as well as skeletal growth. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that melatonin 1a receptor (Mel1aR) was expressed in secretory ameloblasts, the cells of the stratum intermedium and stellate reticulum, external dental epithelial cells, odontoblasts, and dental sac cells. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis showed that HAT-7, a rat dental epithelial cell line, expressed Mel1aR and its expression levels increased after the cells reached confluence. These results strongly suggest that melatonin may play a physiological role in tooth development/growth by regulating the cellular function of odontogenic cells in tooth germs.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Department of Oral Medicine, School of Dental Medicine, Tsurumi University, 2-1-3 Tsurumi, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 230-8501, Japan.
authors.forename: Shuku
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kumasaka
authors.forename: Masashi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimozuma
authors.forename: Tadafumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawamoto
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mishima
authors.forename: Reiko
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tokuyama
authors.forename: Yoko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kamiya
authors.forename: Purevsuren
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Davaadorj
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Kazuhito
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Satomura
mesh_terms: D000565:Ameloblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D002460:Cell Line; D002648:Child; D003743:Dental Enamel / Q000378:metabolism; D003771:Dental Papilla / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D003795:Dental Sac / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D003804:Dentin / Q000378:metabolism; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008334:Mandible / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D008550:Melatonin / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D009804:Odontoblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D009805:Odontogenesis / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D044122:Receptor, Melatonin, MT1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014070:Tooth / Q000254:growth & development*; D014083:Tooth Germ / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D044122:Receptor, Melatonin, MT1; D008550:Melatonin