Hui T, Wang C, Chen D, Zheng L, Huang D, Ye L
State Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases, West China Hospital of Stomatology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
Department of Biochemistry, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA.
Oral Dis. 2017 Jan;23(1):22-28. doi: 10.1111/odi.12464. Epub 2016 Mar 28.
Dental caries, trauma, and other possible factors could lead to injury of the dental pulp. Dental infection could result in immune and inflammatory responses mediated by molecular and cellular events and tissue breakdown. The inflammatory response of dental pulp could be regulated by genetic and epigenetic events. Epigenetic modifications play a fundamental role in gene expression. The epigenetic events might play critical roles in the inflammatory process of dental pulp injury. Major epigenetic events include methylation and acetylation of histones and regulatory factors, DNA methylation, and small non-coding RNAs. Infections and other environmental factors have profound effects on epigenetic modifications and trigger diseases. Despite growing evidences of literatures addressing the role of epigenetics in the field of medicine and biology, very little is known about the epigenetic pathways involved in dental pulp inflammation. This review summarized the current knowledge about epigenetic mechanisms during dental pulp inflammation. Progress in studies of epigenetic alterations during inflammatory response would provide opportunities for the development of efficient medications of epigenetic therapy for pulpitis.
龋齿、外伤及其他可能因素可导致牙髓损伤。牙齿感染可引发由分子和细胞事件以及组织破坏介导的免疫和炎症反应。牙髓的炎症反应可受遗传和表观遗传事件调控。表观遗传修饰在基因表达中起重要作用。表观遗传事件可能在牙髓损伤的炎症过程中起关键作用。主要的表观遗传事件包括组蛋白和调控因子的甲基化与乙酰化、DNA甲基化以及小非编码RNA。感染和其他环境因素对表观遗传修饰有深远影响并引发疾病。尽管越来越多的文献证据表明表观遗传学在医学和生物学领域的作用，但对于牙髓炎症涉及的表观遗传途径却知之甚少。本综述总结了目前关于牙髓炎症过程中表观遗传机制的知识。炎症反应过程中表观遗传改变的研究进展将为开发有效的牙髓炎表观遗传治疗药物提供机会。
