Enamelin Is Critical for Ameloblast Integrity and Enamel Ultrastructure Formation

Mutations in the human enamelin gene cause autosomal dominant hypoplastic amelogenesis imperfecta in which the affected enamel is thin or absent. Study of enamelin knockout NLS-lacZ knockin mice revealed that mineralization along the distal membrane of ameloblast is deficient, resulting in no true enamel formation. To determine the function of enamelin during enamel formation, we characterized the developing teeth of the Enam−/− mice, generated amelogenin-driven enamelin transgenic mouse models, and then introduced enamelin transgenes into the Enam−/− mice to rescue enamel defects. Mice at specific stages of development were subjected to morphologic and structural analysis using β-galactosidase staining, immunohistochemistry, and transmission and scanning electron microscopy. Enamelin expression was ameloblast-specific. In the absence of enamelin, ameloblasts pathology became evident at the onset of the secretory stage. Although the aggregated ameloblasts generated matrix-containing amelogenin, they were not able to create a well-defined enamel space or produce normal enamel crystals. When enamelin is present at half of the normal quantity, enamel was thinner with enamel rods not as tightly arranged as in wild type suggesting that a specific quantity of enamelin is critical for normal enamel formation. Enamelin dosage effect was further demonstrated in transgenic mouse lines over expressing enamelin. Introducing enamelin transgene at various expression levels into the Enam−/− background did not fully recover enamel formation while a medium expresser in the Enam+/− background did. Too much or too little enamelin abolishes the production of enamel crystals and prism structure. Enamelin is essential for ameloblast integrity and enamel formation

Enamelin is critical for ameloblast integrity and enamel ultrastructure formation

Mutations in the human enamelin gene cause autosomal dominant hypoplastic amelogenesis imperfecta in which the affected enamel is thin or absent. Study of enamelin knockout NLS-lacZ knockin mice revealed that mineralization along the distal membrane of ameloblast is deficient, resulting in no true enamel formation. To determine the function of enamelin during enamel formation, we characterized the developing teeth of the Enam-/- mice, generated amelogenin-driven enamelin transgenic mouse models, and then introduced enamelin transgenes into the Enam-/- mice to rescue enamel defects. Mice at specific stages of development were subjected to morphologic and structural analysis using β-galactosidase staining, immunohistochemistry, and transmission and scanning electron microscopy. Enamelin expression was ameloblast-specific. In the absence of enamelin, ameloblasts pathology became evident at the onset of the secretory stage. Although the aggregated ameloblasts generated matrix-containing amelogenin, they were not able to create a well-defined enamel space or produce normal enamel crystals. When enamelin is present at half of the normal quantity, enamel was thinner with enamel rods not as tightly arranged as in wild type suggesting that a specific quantity of enamelin is critical for normal enamel formation. Enamelin dosage effect was further demonstrated in transgenic mouse lines over expressing enamelin. Introducing enamelin transgene at various expression levels into the Enam -/- background did not fully recover enamel formation while a medium expresser in the Enam+/- background did. Too much or too little enamelin abolishes the production of enamel crystals and prism structure. Enamelin is essential for ameloblast integrity and enamel formation. © 2014 Hu et al

Optimizing Immunostaining of Enamel Matrix: Application of Sudan Black B and Minimization of False Positives from Normal Sera and IgGs

Non-specific fluorescence from demineralized enamel matrix can significantly compromise the immunofluorescence studies and lead to false positives. Our goal was to assess degrees of non-specific binding under different conditions and try to optimize procedures for immunofluorescence studies of forming enamel. Firstly, we compared two methods for background fluorescence elimination, i.e., sodium borohydride and Sudan Black B treatments. The results demonstrated that Sudan Black B is far superior to sodium borohydride in reducing the background fluorescence in dental tissues. We also studied the extent of non-specific binding of normal sera and purified polyclonal immunoglobulins (IgG) from five mammalian species, guinea pig, rat, rabbit, goat, and sheep, over a broad range of dilutions. For all sera tested fluorescence signals increased exponentially from 1:1000 to 1:100. Interestingly, the non-specific binding of sera from rodent species was below that of positive control in the whole range of dilutions. In contrast, incubation with sera from 3 non-rodent species produced much higher signals which surpassed the positive control signal at 1:250~1:500 dilution range. Most of the IgGs didn't show significant non-specific binding within 0.25–5 μg/ml range, except rabbit IgG which demonstrated extremely high affinity to the enamel matrix even at concentrations as low as 1 μg/ml. Further, studies confirmed that Fab fragments of purified normal rabbit IgG, not conserved Fc fragments, were involved in the interactions. Our observations suggest this high affinity is associated with the antigen binding sites of rabbit IgG. We anticipate that our results will help enamel researchers to optimize and standardize their immunochemical procedures

Co-option of Hair Follicle Keratins into Amelogenesis Is Associated with the Evolution of Prismatic Enamel: A Hypothesis

Recent discovery of hair follicle keratin 75 (KRT75) in enamel raises questions about the function of this protein in enamel and the mechanisms of its secretion. It is also not clear how this protein with a very specific and narrow expression pattern, limited to the inner root sheath of the hair follicle, became associated with enamel. We propose a hypothesis that KRT75 was co-opted by ameloblasts during the evolution of Tomes' process and the prismatic enamel in synapsids

Role of the Mineral in the Self-Healing of Cracks in Human Enamel

Human enamel is an incredibly resilient biological material, withstanding repeated daily stresses for decades. The mechanisms behind this resilience remain an open question, with recent studies demonstrating a crack-deflection mechanism contributing to enamel toughness and other studies detailing the roles of the organic matrix and remineralization. Here, we focus on the mineral and hypothesize that self-healing of cracks in enamel nanocrystals may be an additional mechanism acting to prevent catastrophic failure. To test this hypothesis, we used a molecular dynamics (MD) approach to compare the fracture behavior of hydroxyapatite (HAP) and calcite, the main minerals in human enamel and sea urchin teeth, respectively. We find that cracks heal under pressures typical of mastication by fusion of crystals in HAP but not in calcite, which is consistent with the resilience of HAP enamel that calcite teeth lack. Scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) images of structurally intact ("sound") human enamel show dashed-line nanocracks that resemble and therefore might be the cracks healed by fusion of crystals produced in silico. The fast, self-healing mechanism shown here is common in soft materials and ceramics but has not been observed in single crystalline materials at room temperature. The crack self-healing in sound enamel nanocrystals, therefore, is unique in the human body and unique in materials science, with potential applications in designing bioinspired materials

Seawater carbonate chemistry and biological processes of oysters Crassostrea virginica during experiments, 2010

Estuarine organisms are exposed to periodic strong fluctuations in seawater pH driven by biological carbon dioxide (CO2) production, which may in the future be further exacerbated by the ocean acidification associated with the global rise in CO2. Calcium carbonate-producing marine species such as mollusks are expected to be vulnerable to acidification of estuarine waters, since elevated CO2 concentration and lower pH lead to a decrease in the degree of saturation of water with respect to calcium carbonate, potentially affecting biomineralization. Our study demonstrates that the increase in CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) in seawater and associated decrease in pH within the environmentally relevant range for estuaries have negative effects on physiology, rates of shell deposition and mechanical properties of the shells of eastern oysters Crassostrea virginica (Gmelin). High CO2 levels (pH ~7.5, pCO2 ~3500 µatm) caused significant increases in juvenile mortality rates and inhibited both shell and soft-body growth compared to the control conditions (pH ~8.2, pCO2 ~380 µatm). Furthermore, elevated CO2 concentrations resulted in higher standard metabolic rates in oyster juveniles, likely due to the higher energy cost of homeostasis. The high CO2 conditions also led to changes in the ultrastructure and mechanical properties of shells, including increased thickness of the calcite laths within the hypostracum and reduced hardness and fracture toughness of the shells, indicating that elevated CO2 levels have negative effects on the biomineralization process. These data strongly suggest that the rise in CO2 can impact physiology and biomineralization in marine calcifiers such as eastern oysters, threatening their survival and potentially leading to profound ecological and economic impacts in estuarine ecosystems

Interactive effects of CO2 and trace metals on the proteasome activity and cellular stress response of marine bivalves Crassostrea virginica and Mercenaria mercenaria

Increased anthropogenic emission of CO2 changes the carbonate chemistry and decreases the pH of the ocean. This can affect the speciation and the bioavailability of metals in polluted habitats such as estuaries. However, the effects of acidification on metal accumulation and stress response in estuarine organisms including bivalves are poorly understood. We studied the interactive effects of CO2 and two common metal pollutants, copper (Cu) and cadmium (Cd), on metal accumulation, intracellular ATP/ubiquitin-dependent protein degradation, stress response and energy metabolism in two common estuarine bivalves—Crassostrea virginica (eastern oyster) and Mercenaria mercenaria (hard shell clam). Bivalves were exposed for 4–5 weeks to clean seawater (control) and to either 50 μg L−1 Cu or 50 μg L−1 Cd at one of three partial pressures of CO2 (PCO2PCO2 ∼395, ∼800 and ∼1500 μatm) representative of the present-day conditions and projections of the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) for the years 2100 and 2250, respectively. Clams accumulated lower metal burdens than oysters, and elevated PCO2PCO2 enhanced the Cd and Cu accumulation in mantle tissues in both species. Higher Cd and Cu burdens were associated with elevated mRNA expression of metal binding proteins metallothionein and ferritin. In the absence of added metals, proteasome activities of clams and oysters were robust to elevated PCO2PCO2, but PCO2PCO2 modulated the proteasome response to metals. Cd exposure stimulated the chymotrypsin-like activity of the oyster proteasome at all CO2 levels. In contrast, trypsin- and caspase-like activities of the oyster proteasome were slightly inhibited by Cd exposure in normocapnia but this inhibition was reversed at elevated PCO2PCO2. Cu exposure inhibited the chymotrypsin-like activity of the oyster proteasome regardless of the exposure PCO2PCO2. The effects of metal exposure on the proteasome activity were less pronounced in clams, likely due to the lower metal accumulation. However, the general trends (i.e. an increase during Cd exposure, inhibition during exposure to Cu, and overall stimulatory effects of elevated PCO2PCO2) were similar to those found in oysters. Levels of mRNA for ubiquitin and tumor suppressor p53 were suppressed by metal exposures in normocapnia in both species but this effect was alleviated or reversed at elevated PCO2PCO2. Cellular energy status of oysters was maintained at all metal and CO2 exposures, while in clams the simultaneous exposure to Cu and moderate hypercapnia (∼800 μatm PCO2PCO2) led to a decline in glycogen, ATP and ADP levels and an increase in AMP indicating energy deficiency. These data suggest that environmental CO2 levels can modulate accumulation and physiological effects of metals in bivalves in a species-specific manner which can affect their fitness and survival during the global change in estuaries

Loss of biological control of enamel mineralization in amelogenin-phosphorylation-deficient mice

Amelogenin, the most abundant enamel matrix protein, plays several critical roles in enamel formation. Importantly, we previously found that the singular phosphorylation site at Ser16 in amelogenin plays an essential role in amelogenesis. Studies of genetically knock-in (KI) modified mice in which Ser16 in amelogenin is substituted with Ala that prevents amelogenin phosphorylation, and in vitro mineralization experiments, have shown that phosphorylated amelogenin transiently stabilizes amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP), the initial mineral phase in forming enamel. Furthermore, KI mice exhibit dramatic differences in the enamel structure compared with wild type (WT) mice, including thinner enamel lacking enamel rods and ectopic surface calcifications. Here, we now demonstrate that amelogenin phosphorylation also affects the organization and composition of mature enamel mineral. We compared WT, KI, and heterozygous (HET) enamel and found that in the WT elongated crystals are co-oriented within each rod, however, their c-axes are not aligned with the rods' axes. In contrast, in rod-less KI enamel, crystalline c-axes are less co-oriented, with misorientation progressively increasing toward the enamel surface, which contains spherulites, with a morphology consistent with abiotic formation. Furthermore, we found significant differences in enamel hardness and carbonate content between the genotypes. ACP was also observed in the interrod of WT and HET enamel, and throughout aprismatic KI enamel. In conclusion, amelogenin phosphorylation plays crucial roles in controlling structural, crystallographic, mechanical, and compositional characteristics of dental enamel. Thus, loss of amelogenin phosphorylation leads to a reduction in the biological control over the enamel mineralization process

Anisotropy of Chemical Bonds in Collagen Molecules Studied by X-ray Absorption Near-Edge Structure (XANES) Spectroscopy

Collagen type I fibrils are the major building blocks of connective tissues. Collagen fibrils are anisotropic supramolecular structures, and their orientation can be revealed by polarized light microscopy and vibrational microspectroscopy. We hypothesized that the anisotropy of chemical bonds in the collagen molecules, and hence their orientation, might also be detected by X-ray photoemission electron spectromicroscopy (X-PEEM) and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy, which use linearly polarized synchrotron light. To test this hypothesis, we analyzed sections of rat-tail tendon, composed of parallel arrays of collagen fibrils. The results clearly indicate that XANES-PEEM is sensitive to collagen fibril orientation and, more specifically, to the orientations of carbonyl and amide bonds in collagen molecules. These data suggest that XANES-PEEM is a promising technique for characterizing the chemical composition and structural organization at the nanoscale of collagen-based connective tissues, including tendons, cartilage, and bone