Noncollagenous proteins of dentin. A re-examination of proteins from rat incisor dentin utilizing techniques to avoid artifacts.

Noncollagenous proteins (NCPs) were obtained rrom rat dentin using several precautionary measures to prevent artifactual degradation and losses of the proteins. Prior to demineralization, rat incisor dentin was extracted with 4 M guanidine hydrochloride (GdmCl) containing enzyme inhibitors. The only major component extracted with GdmCl was a proteoglycan fraction. Most of the NCPs were extracted when the incisors were decalcified with an EDTA solution containing protease inhibitors. The EDTA extract contained four types of macromolecules: acidic glycoproteins, gamma-carboxyglutamic acid (Gla)-containing proteins, phosphoproteins, and proteoglycans. With two exceptions, the apparent molecular weights of these NCPs were greater than 50,000. Our observations contrast sharply with the results obtained by others for human dentin NCPs and suggest that artifactual degradation and losses of some NCPs occurred in these previous studies. The organic phosphate-containing fraction was biphasic when the EDTA extract was chromatographed on DEAE-cellulose. Rechromatography of this fraction by two different procedures separated the material into a complex glycoprotein-containing fraction and, a single rat incisor phosphoprotein peak (RIP). Thus, the earlier interpretation by others that the biphasic nature of the RIP-containing fraction represents two widely differing phosphoprotein species was premature. Highly purified RIP, prepared by passage through a sulfonated polystyrene column, contained no cysteine, valine, methionine, leucine, phenylalanine, or arginine, and the level of phosphoseryl residues was higher than for any previous report. When this preparation of phosphoprotein was dephosphorylated (dP-RIP) and rechromatographed on DEAE-cellulose, a partial separation into two fractions was observed. Automated Edman degradation of fraction dP-RIP suggested the presence of two NH2-terminal sequences: Asp-Asp-Asp-Asn and Asp-Asp-Pro-Asn. However, this material displayed a single protein band when applied to 7.5% sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and stained with Coomassie brilliant blue. The apparent molecular weight of dP-RIP, compared to standard globular proteins, was about 72,000. The data suggest that rat dentin contains at least two major molecular species of RIP that are closely related in size and-structure. In addition, preliminary evidence suggested that other minor forms of related phosphoproteins may exist.