Abstract
Dental pulp, Microvasculature, Tooth development, Dentinogenesis, Vascular cast Summary: The developmental changes of the vascular supply in the dental pulp were studied in molars of rats from the 19-day embryo to 21 days after birth employing the vascular casting/scanning electron microscope method. In the 19-day embryo, terminal pulpal capillaries were observed in the inner region of the dental papilla and formed a coarse, flattened vascular network consisting of thick capillaries. With the beginning of dentinogenesis, the terminal pulpal capillaries invaded into the odontoblastic layer forming hairpin-like loops and narrowing their lumina. At 21 days after birth, they formed a dense, flattened vascular network consisting of thin capillaries between the odontoblasts, only about 5μm from the predentin. These findings indicate that the terminal pulpal capillaries play an active role in dentin formation.
