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Application of immunocytochemistry for detection of proliferating cell populations during tooth development
1Institute of Histology & Embryology, University of Pavia, Italy.
Background:
The production of monoclonal antibodies to cell cycle-related molecules provides the basis for immunochemical studies on cell kinetics.
Methods:
Immunocytochemistry permits the tissue localization of replicating cells, whereas flow cytometry defines the exact position of immunoreactive cells in the cell cycle and ensures a quantitative analysis of the growth fraction. Bromo-deoxyuridine-antibody can be used to reveal S phase-traversing cells, whereas the immunoreactivity for the Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen defines the G1, S, and G2-M subpopulations of the cell cycle.
Results:
Odontogenic cells produce secretory products (e.g., enamel and dentine matrix proteins and growth factors) and express receptors and oncogenes during specific stages of their differentiation.
Conclusions:
The simultaneous detection of cell cycle-related antigens and differentiation markers using double immunochemical staining may be useful to clarify the role of putative regulatory molecules in the control of cell growth during odontogenesis, thus unveiling molecular mechanisms that regulate developmental dynamics.