Mechanosensitive Piezo1 and Piezo2 ion channels in craniofacial development and dentistry: Recent advances and prospects

Abstract

Mechanical forces play important roles in many biological processes and there is increasing interest and understanding of these roles. Mechanotransduction is the process by which mechanical stimuli are converted to biochemical signals through specific mechanisms, and this results in the activation of downstream signaling pathways with specific effects on cell behaviors. This review systematically summarizes the current understanding of the mechanosensitive Piezo1 and Piezo2 ion channels in craniofacial bone, tooth, and periodontal tissue, presenting the latest relevant evidence with implications for potential treatments and managements of dental and orofacial diseases and deformities. The mechanosensitive ion channels Piezo1 and Piezo2 are widely expressed in various cells and tissues and have essential functions in mechanosensation and mechanotransduction. These channels play an active role in many physiological and pathological processes, such as growth and development, mechano-stimulated bone homeostasis and the mediation of inflammatory responses. Emerging evidence indicates the expression of Piezo1 and Piezo2 in bone, dental tissues and dental tissue-derived stem cells and suggests that they function in dental sensation transduction, dentin mineralization and periodontal bone remodeling and modulate orthodontic tooth movement.

The periodontal ligament, temperature‐sensitive ion channels TRPV1–4, and the mechanosensitive ion channels Piezo1 and 2: A Nobel connection

“…Piezo proteins 1 and 2 are emerging as important mediators of various aspects of mechanotransduction 88–90 . Piezo1 is expressed in non‐sensory tissues, for example, vasculature, lymphatic tissue, bone, heart, and has been shown to sense a variety of mechanical stresses such as compression, shear stress, and stretch 88 .…”

“…Piezo proteins 1 and 2 are emerging as important mediators of various aspects of mechanotransduction. [88][89][90] Piezo1 is expressed in non-sensory tissues, for example, vasculature, lymphatic tissue, bone, heart, and has been shown to sense a variety of mechanical stresses such as compression, shear stress, and stretch. 88 These two Piezo receptors have been shown to rapidly convert applied force into electrochemical signals critical for proprioception, sensation of touch, baroreception, as well as cell volume regulation.…”

Immunolocalization of the mechanogated ion channels PIEZO1 and PIEZO2 in human and mouse dental pulp and periodontal ligament

“…In the present study, the expression of PIEZO1 and PIEZO2 in adult human and mouse teeth was investigated using immunohistochemistry. PIEZO1 and PIEZO2 are present in teeth; however, their functions are poorly understood and remain to be definitively established (Lin et al, 2022; Pei et al, 2021).…”

Depletion of PIEZO1 expression is accompanied by upregulating p53 signaling in mice with perioperative neurocognitive disorder

“…By retrieving concerned literature, except for PIEZO1, there are no reports about whether LRRK1, MOXD1 and MS4A6B relate to p53 at present, which encourage us to uncover their relationship in our further work. PIEZO1, a mechanically-activated ion channel, links mechanical forces to biological signals (Lin et al 2022). This gene exerts important function in multiple biological processes and is considered to be a therapeutic target or at least, a biomarker of many diseases (Xu et (Chi et al 2022).…”