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TL;DR
It found that this genetic change caused subtle morphological alterations in tooth crowns, suggesting such signaling could be a mechanism for minor evolutionary changes in tooth shape.
Cells · 8 authors, 6 centres
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It found that this genetic change caused subtle morphological alterations in tooth crowns, suggesting such signaling could be a mechanism for minor evolutionary changes in tooth shape.
Using a mouse model (K14Cre;Jagged1fl/fl) where Jagged1 was deleted from dental epithelium, researchers observed subtle morphological changes in molar crowns, including variations in cusp interconnections and size. These changes were associated with perturbations in signaling pathways like Wnt and planar cell polarity, and with premature differentiation of ameloblasts and odontoblasts, leading to accelerated hard tissue deposition. The authors suggest that modulation of Jagged1-mediated signaling could drive minor dental modifications contributing to speciation, drawing parallels with microevolutionary patterns in rodents. Limitations include the lack of direct evidence for this evolutionary role in natural populations and the use of a mathematical model to predict similar effects in humans, which remains unverified experimentally.