Effects of cerulenin, an inhibitor of fatty acid synthesis on reconstitution of the dental basement membrane.

When trypsin-dissociated enamel organs and dental papillae were recombined in the presence of cerulenin — an antibiotic which is a potent inhibitor of fatty acid synthesis — the newly synthesized basement membrane seemed defective in a dose-dependent manner. The three-dimensional relationship between the basement membrane components and the plasma membrane appears to be regulated in part by lipids.