Oral Cleft Related-Genes may be Involved in Root Curvature of Maxillary Lateral Incisors

Objective The maxilla is formed by the medial nasal and maxillary processes fusion. The dental lamina develops from 2 origins connecting in the lateral incisor. The maxillary lateral incisor region is often affected by dental anomalies and clefting. It is possible that genes involved in oral cleft could also be associated with a variety of phenotypic variations in the maxillary lateral incisor. In this phenotype-genotype study, we explored the association between polymorphisms in the oral-cleft-related genes BMP2 and BMP4 and root curvature of maxillary lateral incisors. Design Cross-sectional study. Settings Universities and private clinics. Patients, Participants Panoramic radiographs and DNA from 231 patients were analyzed. Main Outcome Measures Schneider method (1971) was applied to estimate the degree of root curvature of the maxillary lateral incisors and to classify the root as straight (5 degrees or less) or curved (higher than 5 degrees). Genetic polymorphisms in BMP2 (rs235768 and rs1005464) and BMP4 (rs17563) were genotyped. Statistical analysis was performed. Results A total of 401 teeth (199 left and 202 right) were evaluated. Genetic analysis demonstrated trends toward association for the rs1005464 in BMP2 (P = .025) in co-dominant model and in dominant model (P = .026) for left incisors. The rs235768 in BMP2 showed trends toward association with the degree of root curvature in left incisors in the recessive model (P = .031). rs17563 in BMP4 also showed trends toward association with the degree of the root curvature in left incisors (P = .019). Conclusion BMP2 (rs235768 and rs1005464) and BMP4 (rs17563) might be involved in maxillary lateral incisor root curvature.