Micro-dissection of enamel organ from mandibular incisor of rats exposed to environmental toxicants

Abstract

Enamel defects resulting from environmental conditions and ways of life are public health concerns because of their high prevalence. These defects result from altered activity of cells responsible for enamel synthesis named ameloblasts, which present in enamel organ. During amelogenesis, ameloblasts follow a specific and precise sequence of events of proliferation, differentiation, and death. A rat continually growing incisors is a suitable experimental model to study ameloblast activity and differentiation stages in physiological and pathological conditions. Here, we describe a reliable and consistent method to micro-dissect enamel organ of rats exposed to environmental toxicants. The micro-dissected dental epithelia contain secretion-and maturation-stage ameloblasts that may be used for qualitative experiments, such as immunohistochemistry assays and in situ hybridization, as well as for quantitative analyses such as RT-qPCR, RNA-seq, and Western blotting.