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Continuous tooth replacement: what can teleost fish teach us?
Ann Huysseune1,2, P Eckhard Witten1
1Research Group Evolutionary Developmental Biology, Biology Department, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, Ghent, B-9000, Belgium.
Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
|December 27, 2023
Summary
Teleost fish continuously replace their teeth, unlike mammals. This review explores diverse tooth replacement patterns in ray-finned fish, highlighting potential triggers and the role of progenitor cells, not stem cells, for future human tooth regeneration research.
Area of Science:
- Comparative Dental Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Most non-mammalian vertebrates exhibit continuous tooth replacement, a trait largely lost in mammals.
- Ray-finned fish (actinopterygians), particularly teleosts, display remarkable diversity in tooth distribution and replacement patterns.
- Understanding teleost tooth replacement offers insights into evolutionary changes in mammalian dentition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and synthesize current knowledge on tooth replacement diversity in teleost fish.
- To investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying continuous tooth replacement in teleosts.
- To evaluate the potential of teleosts as models for human tooth regeneration.
Main Methods:
- Review of classical morphological and contemporary molecular studies on teleost tooth replacement.
- Analysis of gene expression patterns related to tooth formation and replacement.
- Comparative analysis of tooth replacement strategies across different teleost taxa.
Main Results:
- Teleost tooth replacement exhibits significant diversity, initiated from various epithelial sources, including the absence of a successional dental lamina.
- Replacement triggers may involve local progenitor cell proliferation rather than solely epithelial stem cells.
- The neurovascular link's role in tooth replacement is under-investigated but potentially significant.
Conclusions:
- Teleost tooth replacement mechanisms, independent of a dental lamina and definitive stem cells, position them as valuable models for human tooth regeneration.
- Continuous tooth replacement in teleosts may serve to increase tooth count during ontogeny while preserving primary dentition features.
- Further research into progenitor cell behavior and neurovascular interactions is crucial for understanding teleost tooth replacement and its translational potential.
