The teeth of Homo Lontra are much tougher than that of Homo Sapiens due to their increased enamel thickness. In mice and humans, the teeth are not continuously grown or renewed after development; therefore, any alteration to tooth structure would have to take place developmentally.1 Muscle segment homeobox 2 (MSX2) encoded proteins act as repressors; specifically affecting epithelial-mesenchyme interactions as well as ameloblast differentiation, a cell that deposits enamel proteins during tooth development.2Msx2+/– mutants display stronger expression of amelogenin (proteins related in amelogenesis; enamel development) than that of Msx2+/+ individuals, with the heterozygote displaying a twofold increase in amelogenin expression.2
- Li, J., Parada, C., & Chai, Y. (2017). Cellular and molecular mechanisms of tooth root development. Development, 144(3), 374–384. doi: 10.1242/dev.137216
- Molla, M., Descroix, V., Aïoub, M., Simon, S., Castañeda, B., Hotton, D., … Berdal, A. (2010). Enamel Protein Regulation and Dental and Periodontal Physiopathology in Msx2 Mutant Mice. The American Journal of Pathology, 177(5), 2516–2526. doi: 10.2353/ajpath.2010.091224
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