Use of human amelogenin in molecular encapsulation for the design of pH responsive microparticles

Identification of major matrix metalloproteinase-20 proteolytic processing products of murine amelogenin and tyrosine-rich amelogenin peptide using a nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy based method

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to identify major matrix metalloproteinase-20 (MMP20) proteolytic processing products of amelogenin over time and determine if the tyrosine-rich amelogenin peptide (TRAP) was a substrate of MMP20.

DESIGN

Recombinant¹⁵N-labeled murine amelogenin and ¹³C,¹⁵N-labeled TRAP were incubated with MMP20 under conditions where amelogenin self-assembles into nanospheres. Digestion products were fractionated by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography at various time points. Product identification took advantage of the intrinsic disorder property of amelogenin that results in little change to its fingerprint ¹H-¹⁵N heteronuclear single-quantum coherence nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum in 2% acetic acid upon removing parts of the protein, allowing cleavage site identification by observing which amide cross peaks disappear.

RESULTS

The primary product in five out of the six major reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography bands generated after a 24 h incubation of murine amelogenin with MMP20 were: S55-L163, P2-L147, P2-E162, P2-A167, and P2-R176. After 72 h these products were replaced with five major reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography bands containing: L46-A170, P2-S152, P2-F151, P2-W45, and short N-terminal peptides. TRAP was completely digested by MMP20 into multiple small peptides with the initial primary site of cleavage between S16 and Y17.

CONCLUSIONS

Identification of the major MMP20 proteolytic products of amelogenin confirm a dynamic process, with sites towards the C-terminus more rapidly attacked than sites near the N-terminus. This observation is consistent with nanosphere models where the C-terminus is exposed and the N-terminus more protected. One previously reported end-product of the MMP20 proteolytic processing of amelogenin, TRAP, is shown to be an in vitro substrate for MMP20.

Identification of Trombospondin-1 as a Novel Amelogenin Interactor by Functional Proteomics

Amelogenins are a set of low molecular-weight enamel proteins belonging to a group of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins with a key role in tooth enamel development and in other regeneration processes, such as wound healing and angiogenesis. Since only few data are actually available to unravel amelogenin mechanism of action in chronic skin healing restoration, we moved to the full characterization of the human amelogenin isoform 2 interactome in the secretome and lysate of Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial cells (HUVEC), using a functional proteomic approach. Trombospondin-1 has been identified as a novel and interesting partner of human amelogenin isoform 2 and their direct binding has been validated thought biophysical orthogonal approaches.

Efficacy of amelogenin-chitosan hydrogel in biomimetic repair of human enamel in pH-cycling systems

Amelogenin-chitosan (CS-AMEL) hydrogel has shown great potential for the prevention, restoration, and treatment of defective enamel. As a step prior to clinical trials, this study aimed to examine the efficacy of CS-AMEL hydrogel in biomimetic repair of human enamel with erosive or caries-like lesions in pH-cycling systems. Two models for enamel defects, erosion and early caries, were addressed in this study. Two pH-cycling systems were designed to simulate the daily cariogenic challenge as well as the nocturnal pH conditions in the oral cavity. After pH cycling and treatment with CS-AMEL hydrogel, a synthetic layer composed of oriented apatite crystals was formed on the eroded enamel surface. CS-AMEL repaired the artificial incipient caries by re-growing oriented crystals and reducing the depth of the lesions by up to 70% in the pH-cycling systems. The results clearly demonstrate that the CS-AMEL hydrogel is effective at the restoration of erosive and carious lesions under pH-cycling conditions.