Rhythmic dentinogenesis in the rabbit incisor: Allometric aspects

Summary

We have described differences in the aspects of biological rhythms for calcium and sulfur deposition on the labial and lingual sides of the growing rabbit incisor, where growth occurs along a spiral axis. The calcium oscillations appear to be smoother on the labial side than on the lingual side. The lingual side is characterized by high-frequency rhythms with high amplitudes which possess the greatest percent of the power (Fourier analysis). These observations also reflect a difference in behavior of the mean Ca concentration across the labial and lingual sides. Sulfur rhythms on the labial side have higher amplitudes than those on the lingual side, but systematic differences in distribution of power between high and low frequencies is not as pronounced as in the case of Ca.

The differences in Ca rhythms reflect differences in the growth rates of incisors on either side of the spiral axis. The labial side grows slightly faster than the lingual side, and its odontoblasts secrete Ca along the spiral axis and toward the pulp cavity at the same time. Thus the resultant direction of growth is more nearly opposite the extension of the occlusal end on the labial side, and Ca is consequently deposited over a wider area relative to that on the lingual surfaces. On the lingual side, Ca is deposited within a more limited area, and growth must therefore be continuous at high frequencies. The distribution of Ca on both sides of the tooth reflects these differences in growth rate and periodicity in two ways. First, given a unit area of tooth, the calcium concentration on the labial side is less than that of the lingual side. Second, whereas the calcium concentration on the labial side declines rapidly from the enamel-dentin junction to the pulp cavity, it is uniformly high across the lingual side because its growth is more continuous at high frequencies.