Dentin sialophosphoprotein (DSPP), a major non-collagenous matrix protein
of odontoblasts, is cleaved mainly into dentin sialoprotein (DSP) and dentin
phosphoprotein (DPP). Both DSP and DPP have been implicated to have specific roles
in dentin mineralization. We had earlier reported that that DSPP null mice display a
phenotype in which teeth have widened predentin and irregular dentin mineralization
resulting in sporadic unmineralized areas in dentin and frequent pulp exposure. Many of
the earlier in vitro studies indicated that DPP plays a significant role in initiation and
completion of dentin mineralization. We have recently reported our findings on DPP
conditional knockout mice that indicate distinct roles of DSP and DPP in dentin
mineralization: DSP is involved in regulating initiation of dentin mineralization, and
DPP being involved in the maturation of mineralized dentin. In this review, we
summarized lessons learned from mouse models of DSPP, DSP, and DPP.
Keywords: Dentin sialophosphoprotein, dentin sialoprotein, dentin phosphoprotein,
dentin mineralization, DSPP null mice, regulation of dentin mineralization,
maturation mineralized dentin.
