The progress on the regulation effect of Fibulin-7 in dental development

Fibulin-7, known as TM14, has been identified as a new member of the Fibulin family proteins, and was firstly constructed and screened by differential hybridization using cDNA microarrays of dental germs. It is a 440-amino acid protein that has a calculated molecular weight of 48 000. As the Fibulin family proteins are expressed in basement membranes, elastic fibers and other matrices, they had been found in association with ECM and can play important parts in angiogenesis and organ development, which are involved in the process of forming and stabilizing the organization of ECM structures. Fibulin-7 mRNA is expressed not only in developing teeth, hair follicles and cartilage, but also in spongiotrophoblast cells of embryo, and extraembryonic tissues of the placenta. During odontoblast differentiation, Fibulin-7 interacts with Fibulin-1, fibronectin, and dentin sialophosphoprotein, and may serve as a cell adhesion molecule to anchor dental mesenchymal cells and odontoblasts in the dentin matrix. Fibulin-7 gene is located in human chromosome 2q13, and its deletion in zebrafish leads to congenital heart defects and craniofacial malformations. The purpose of this review is to summarize the effect of Fibulin-7 in dental development. Key words: Fibulin-7; Fibulin family proteins; Dental development; Maxillofacial development