Abstract:

Objective: The aim of this studywas to investigate roles of fibronectin in dental pulp injury and repair.Methods: The cavity was prepared in the mesial surface of the firstmolars ofWistar rats. The ratswere sacrificed in 3, 15, and 30 days post-operation. After histological process, the paraffin sectionswere reactedwithmonoclonal antibodies against ratfibronectin usingSABCmethod. Results: Immunohistochemical stain demonstrated that the positive staining of fibronectin presented in different stages of dental pulp repair. In the group of 3 days, the weak stainingwas located in odontoblasts. After15 days, odontoblast-like cells and dental pulp cells were stained positively. 30 days after operation, the stronger stainingwas observed in odontoblast-like cells and pulp fi- broblasts. Positive staining was seen in reparative dentin, particularly along the interface of reparative dentin and dental pulp. Conclusion: These results demonstrated that fibronectin might play a role of mediation during the reparative dentinogenesis.

Key words: reparative dentin, fibronectin, dental pulp, immunohistochemistry