RESEARCH ARTICLE


Notch 1 Receptor, Delta 1 Ligand and HES 1 Transcription Factor are Expressed in the Lining Epithelium of Periapical Cysts (Preliminary Study)



E Meliou*, 1, NP Kerezoudis1, KI Tosios2, H Kiaris3
1 Dept. of Endodontology, Dental School, University of Athens, Greece
2 Dept. of Oral Pathology and Surgery, Dental School, University of Athens, Greece
3 Dept. of Biochemistry, Medical School, University of Athens, Greece


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© Meliou et al.; Licensee Bentham Open.

open-access license: This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.

* Address correspondence to this author at the 39 P. Ioakeim Street, 10675Athens, Greece; Tel: -0030-2107297612; E-mail: emeliou@dent.uoa.gr


Abstract

Periapical cyst is a chronic inflammatory disorder of periradicular tissues. The precise pathological mechanisms involved in periapical cyst enlargement remain unclear. Notch signaling is an evolutionarily conserved pathway with a regulatory role in cell fate decisions during development and in carcinogenesis. To date, there are no published data available on the expression of Notch signaling components in periapical cysts or any other jaw cyst. In this immunohistochemical study we have examined the expression of the receptor Notch 1, the ligand Delta 1 and the transcription factor HES 1 in the epithelium of well defined periapical cysts. Immunostaining reaction of Notch 1, Delta 1 and HES 1 was observed in the cytoplasm and/or the cytoplasmic membrane and occasionally in the nucleus in the majority of epithelial cells of all periapical cysts. The present observations indicate that Notch pathway is active in the epithelium of periapical cysts. It can be speculated that activation of epithelial cells of periapical cysts is associated with activation of Notch pathway and imply involvement of this pathway in periapical cyst growth and expansion.

Keywords: Notch 1, Delta 1, HES 1, epithelium, periapical cyst.