Biomodulator Cascade during Orthodontic Tooth Movement

Abstract

Bone is highly dynamic tissue. It's the plastic nature of bone which is responsible for orthodontic tooth movement upon application of force. It is the inherent property of any cell to react to a mechanical stimulus of extracellular or intracellular nature. The generation and propagation of signaling cascades molecules and associated tissue remodeling in adjacent tissues response to applied mechanical loads form the central theme of orthodontic tooth movement. Orthodontic forces deform the extracellular matrix and activate cells of the paradental tissues, facilitating tooth movement. Findings in mechanobiology have illuminated sequential cellular and molecular events, such as signal generation and transduction, cytoskeletal re-organization, gene expression, differentiation, proliferation, synthesis and secretion of specific products, and apoptosis. Orthodontists work in a biological environment, wherein applied forces engender remodeling of both mineralized and non-mineralized periodontal tissues, including the associated blood vessels and neural elements.