Expression patterns of genes critical for SHH, BMP, and FGF pathways during the lumen formation of human salivary glands

In this study, we examined the expression patterns of the molecules critical for SHH, BMP, and FGF signalin g cascades from the canalicular stage to the terminal bud stage, the key stages for lumen formation, in human SG and compared them with the expression data observed in mice. Our results manifested that genes involved in SHH signaling pathway showed identical expression patterns, while genes involved in BMP as well as FGF pathway exhibited similar but distinct expression patterns in humans to those in the mouse. We concluded that the expression patterns of genes involved in SHH, BMP, and FGF pathways in the development of human SG exhibit high similarity to that in the development of mouse SG d uring lumen formation, suggesting that the molecular mechanism regulating the morphogenesis of SG during lumen formation may be conserved in mice and humans. Our results will have an implication in the future establishment of stem-cell based approaches for the repair of SG function.
Source: Journal of Molecular Histology - Category: Laboratory Medicine Source Type: research