Identification of important genes for tooth development using single cell RNA-sequence datasets of sequential developing mouse molars

The organ development is dictated by the genes preferentially expressed in tissue or cell types uniquely. The clarification of gene expression profile and identification of specific genes in organ provide detailed understanding of organogenesis. Toward this purpose, the genome-wide analysis is a growing powerful tool for understanding development processes in organogenesis. Tooth is composed from enamel, dentin and cementum and these tissues are identical from other organs. The tooth-forming cell types are therefore unique and have complexed organization. The mechanisms of signal induction during tooth development is complicated because of the function of each cell types are still unclear. Single-cell RNA-sequence (scRNA-seq) is a suitable tool revealing gene expression of each cells. In this study, we approach the important genes in tooth development using scRNA-seq of sequential developing mouse molars. Our results show that the scRNA-seq highlight genes important for tooth development. These findings contribute resolving the mechanism of tooth development and establish the basis of tooth regeneration in future. Overall design: Examination of epithelial and mesenchymal cells in mouse molar. NIDCD/NIDCR Genomics and Computational Biology Core [contributor]