Scanning electron microscope observations on collagen fibers in human dentin and pulp

Abstract

– Human permanent teeth were examined in the scanning electron microscope after demineralization and exposure to preparative procedures based on hydrogen peroxide, trypsin, and EDTA. These substances removed the inorganic material, the cellular structures, the homogeneous connective tissue ground substance, and interfibrillar matrix. The remaining tissue components comprised a network of distinct collagen fibers whose organization was related to the type of tissue in which these were incorporated. A similar or identical method has not been developed or applied to teeth previously. Dentin and predentin comprised a compact mass of fibers which basically were parallel to the continuously growing interior surface of the predentin, or arranged at an acute angle to this plane. Collagen fibers in the pulp were numerous, but lacked any particular orientation in most areas. Interodontoblastic fibers crossed the odontoblastic zone at a right angle to the pulp chamber wall and mingled with collagen fibers in predentin. When previously published findings of ours are taken into account, it is possible to conclude that other factors than the organization of the collagen fibers are responsible for the stainability of these fibers in predentin and in interglobular dentin with silver methenamine, and that aldehyde groups on collagen fibers in predentin may be actively and directly involved in the mineralization of the dentin.

High resolution scanning electron microscopy of the subplasmalemmal cytoskeleton in human odontoblasts

“…This study also, in conjunction with another recent study by the same authors (27) and those of SOGAARD-PEDERSEN (28) and MATHIESSEN et al (29), extetids the knowledge compiled by other authors (30) concerning the presence, nature, and location of fibrillar structures in the odontoblastic zone, by indicating that the basic observations published by VON KORFF (31) and VON EB-NER (22,32) do not entirely exclude each other as previously thought, although their interpretation of the published results, especially concerning the elaboration ofthe collagen fibers in dentin, was wrong in many respects.…”

Location, arrangement and possible function of interodontoblastic collagen fibres in association with calcium hydroxide-induced hard tissue bridges

“…Recent transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopic studies show the existence of interodontoblastic collagen fibres in human dentine (Sogaard‐Pedersen et al . 1990), in the root of cat dentine (Bishop et al .…”

“…Recent transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopic studies show the existence of interodontoblastic collagen ¢bres in human dentine (Sogaard-Pedersen et al 1990), in the root of cat dentine (Bishop et al1991) and in mechanically exposed monkey dental pulp (Kitasako et al 2000a). A parallel study by Salmon et al (1991) demonstrated bundles of ¢brils that course between odontoblasts through the predentine to become incorporated into the mineralized dentine.…”

Animal and human dentin microstructure and elemental composition

“…The bulk of the dentin comprises intertubular dentin (ITD), whose organic content is approximately three times higher than in PTD [14]. In ITD, collagen assembles a solid framework with fibrils arranged into incremental planes, oriented preferentially in layers perpendicular to DT and parallel to the long axis of the root [9,[19][20][21][22]. The major role of interwoven collagen fibrils is to control deposition and orientation of HA crystals [20].…”