Calcitonin may be a useful therapeutic agent for osteoclastogenesis syndromes involving premature eruption of the tooth

Abstract

Tooth eruption is a complex and tightly regulated process that involves cells of the tooth organ and the surrounding alveolus. Recent researches have shown that tooth eruption depends on the presence of osteoclasts to create an eruption pathway through the alveolar bone. The most important physiologic role likely being at the eruptive site, in the formation of osteoclasts through signaling via the RANKL/OPG pathway. Calcitonin is an endogenous inhibitor of osteoclast development and function and thus of bone resorption. Specific calcitonin receptors are expressed on osteoclasts and their activation leads to the inhibition of osteoclast development and functions. Recent concepts about inhibiting osteoclastogenesis of calcitonin is that RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis were blocked by the endogenous decoy receptor osteoprotegerin and were also strongly reduced by calcitonin, we hypothesize that calcitonin may has anti-eruption properties. For the clinical point of view, we can inject calcitonin in the oral mucosa of the affected tooth to inhibit bone resorption, then to facilitate root forming which may useful to premature eruption of tooth and short root anomaly disease (SRA) caused by every reasons such as hypoplasia of teeth root (HTR), Singleton-Mertern syndrome (SMS), infection and iatrogenic factors, etc.