SHORT COMMUNICATION

Morphological heterogeneity of matrix vesicles in rat molar tooth germs with relation to predentin maturation

抄録

Matrix vesicles (MVs) in thin sections, were classified into four types: electronopaque MVs, lucid MVs, MVs of medium opacity, and MVs containing needle-shaped inclusions. In freeze-fracture replicas, they were classified into three types by the number of membrane-associated particles (MAPs) on the convex P-faces: MAP-rich MVs, MAPpoor MVs, and MVs with a moderate amount of MAPs. In the course of predentin maturation, electron-opaque MVs and MAP-rich MVs increased in number. It is believed that the increase of these MVs is necessary for the onset of mineralization.