Casasco Marco, Icaro Cornaglia Antonia, Riva Federica, Calligaro Alberto, Casasco Andrea
Department of Experimental Medicine, Histology & Embryology Unit, Via Forlanini 10, 27100 Pavia, Italy.
Ital J Anat Embryol. 2006 Jul-Sep;111(3):125-31.
The p63 gene encodes six splice variants expressed with transactivating or dominant-negative activities. Animal studies with p63 -/- mutants have suggested that p63 is important for proper development of several organs, including tooth and salivary gland. Moreover, mutations of p63 have been detected in patients affected by ectrodactyly, ectodermal dysplasia and facial clefts. To clarify the role of p63 in craniofacial development, we have studied the localization of p63 protein in human and rat oral tissues using immunohistochemistry. p63 immunostaining was identified in the enamel organ, oral epithelium and developing salivary glands. All compartments of the enamel organ were immunolabelled, whereas only basal and some suprabasal cells of the oral epithelium were stained. Ectomesenchyme-derived cells, including pulp cells, odontoblasts, bone cells and chondrocytes, were negative. The staining pattern was identical in human and rat tissues. These data lend support to the hypothesis that p63 is involved in growth and differentation of ectoderm-derived oral tissues and may be useful to clarify molecular and developmental aspects observed in animal knockout experiments and human syndromes related to p63 gene alteration.
p63基因编码六种剪接变体，这些变体以具有反式激活或显性负性活性的方式表达。对p63基因敲除突变体的动物研究表明，p63对包括牙齿和唾液腺在内的多个器官的正常发育很重要。此外，在患有并指（趾）畸形、外胚层发育不良和面部裂隙的患者中检测到了p63突变。为了阐明p63在颅面发育中的作用，我们使用免疫组织化学研究了p63蛋白在人和大鼠口腔组织中的定位。在釉器、口腔上皮和发育中的唾液腺中鉴定出p63免疫染色。釉器的所有部分均被免疫标记，而仅口腔上皮的基底细胞和一些基底上层细胞被染色。包括牙髓细胞、成牙本质细胞、骨细胞和软骨细胞在内的外间充质来源细胞呈阴性。人和大鼠组织中的染色模式相同。这些数据支持了以下假设：p63参与外胚层来源的口腔组织的生长和分化，并且可能有助于阐明在动物基因敲除实验和与p63基因改变相关的人类综合征中观察到的分子和发育方面的问题。
